Introduction:
Kent County Council (KCC) as the Strategic Commissioner of Education Provision in the County is responsible for ensuring there are sufficient high quality places for all learners, while at the same time fulfilling our other responsibilities to raise education standards and be the champion of children and their families in securing good quality education.
Our Commissioning Plan for Education Provision in Kent 2014-2019 is key to achieving our aims and identifies the need for new school provision across Kent. One such need is an additional 2FE primary school, together with further provision as development proceeds, within the Eastern Quarry development in the Dartford district. Our Strategy for Children and Young People with Special Educational Needs & Disabilities identifies the need for more satellite units for pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN).
The Eastern Quarry development is within the area to be designated and known as the Ebbsfleet Garden City. The quarry extends to approximately 270 hectares and is a brownfield site, a small section is still be used for mineral extraction (chalk) which will cease. The site is bounded on the west by Bluewater, Southfleet Road to the East, Swanscombe & Greenhithe to the North and the main A2 trunk road to the South.
It is proposed that the site will comprise of three villages, one of which is Castle Hill. Development hasnow begun on Castle Hill and the first housing units have been sold and occupied.Once complete the new housing will produce additional demand which cannot be met locally.The Kent Commissioning Plan for Education Provision 2014-2019 has identified a need for additional primary provision of up to 2FE within the Swanscombe & Greenhithe planning area for 2016.
A new school is therefore required. This school will be a 2FE, (4 – 11 year old primary school aged children, with a maintained nursery offering 26 places. Acommunication and interaction provision would offer 15 places for children who have speech, language & communication needs.
Education Vision:
Our vision is for Kent to be the most forward looking area in England for education and learning so that we are the best place for children and young people to grow up, learn, develop and achieve.
Kent should be a place where families thrive and all children learn and develop well from the earliest years so that they are ready to succeed at school, have excellent foundations for learning and are equipped well for achievement in life, no matter what their background.
In Kent we should have the same expectations for every child and young person to make good progress in their learning, to achieve well and to have the best opportunities for an independent economic and social life as they become young adults.
Every child and young person should go to a good or outstanding school, have access to the best teaching, and benefit from schools and other providers working in partnership with each other to share the best practice as they continue to improve.
Key Dates:
Event / DateNew school community consultation commences / 1December 2014
Invitation to submit a proposal published / 8 December 2014
New school consultation drop-in session / 9 December 2014
Community Consultation Closes / 19 January 2015
Deadline for receipt of applications / 19 January 2015
KCC inform DfE of all proposals received / 21 January 2015
Promoter Assessment Panel meets / February 2015
KCC submits all proposals to the Secretary of State / Before 14 February 2015
Secretary of State full sign off / Before 28 March 20145
School Specification:
Location:
The school will be situated on land at Castle Hill, Eastern Quarry, Dartford, Kent, DA10. Please see site plan document for illustrative purposes only.
Expected Opening Date:
1 September 2016
Age Range:
The school will be for boys and girls aged between 4 and 11 years.
Capacity:
It is anticipated that the school (which will have 14 class bases) will open withone of two models, depending on the rate of housebuilding and KCC Commissioning needs. It is expected that the provider would liaise closely with KCC Education colleagues to determine which model is applied. There will either be:
- one intake of thirty pupils into Year R in September 2016, followed by subsequent intakes of 30 pupils into every new reception year, so that the school grows incrementally every year. Or;
- one intake of thirty pupils into Year R and intakes of 15 into both Year 1 & 2, in September 2016, followed by subsequent intakes of 30 pupils into every new reception year, and subsequent years.
The promoters will need to confirm that they will work with the Local Authority, the developer and Education Review Group as specified in the Section 106 Agreement to ensure that the school grows in a way that supports the new housing development.
Anticipated Structure
Model 1
Year 1 / Year 2 / Year 3Class 1 / R = 30 / R = 30 / R = 30
Class 2 / Y1 = 30 / Y1 = 30
Class 3 / Y2 = 30
Total Roll / 30 / 60 / 90
Guaranteed pupil funding / 30 / 60 / 90
Model 2
Year 1 / Year 2 / Year 3Class 1 / R = 30 / R = 30 / R = 30
Class 2 / Y1 =15 & Y2 = 15 / Y1 = 30 / Y1 = 30
Class 3 / Y2 =15 & Y3 = 15 / Y2 = 30
Class 4 / Y3 =15 & Y4 = 15
Total Roll / 60 / 90 / 120
Guaranteed pupil funding / 60 / 90 / 120
The school will host a specialist resource based provision(SRBP) for pupils who have greater difficulty in learning as a result of speech, language & communication needs. The objective of provision is to enable pupils to make progress in their speech, language and communication skills in an inclusive environment and to reduce their anxieties.
The SRBP is expected to be a centre of excellence which helps other providers to increase their expertise in this area. The SRBP will be an inclusive provision for up to 15 pupils. It will open in September 2016 and admit 1-3 pupils in the first year. Thereafter it will grow incrementally per year until it reaches its capacity of 15 places.
Community Facilities:
The new school will be required to be supportive and sympathetic to community use of the facilities. This might include access to a large meeting room, kitchen suitable for food preparation, sports facilities and changing room and shower. The promoters will need to indicate agreement for the school to manage the community facility and make it available for community events and activities. The charging policy and hours of operation are to be determined by the school, but are expected to be fair and reasonable.
Pre-School/Nursery:
The early years sufficiency assessment for the area indicates a need to increase pre-school/nursery provision. Dedicated accommodation will be made available as part of the school building for pre-school provision. Promoters are required to agree to operate or commission the pre-school from the school site. It would be for the promoter to determine whether to operate the pre-school provision or enter into an agreement with an independent provider.
Admission Arrangements:
The admission number for reception aged children will be 30, rising to 60 as local demand requires. There is no specified catchment area for the school, but the KCC Fair Access team will implement an admission criteria for three yearsthat would give a higher priority to children resident in the defined limits of the Castle Hill development. This would only apply in the event of oversubscription for each school year.
We would expect most pupils to live within walking distance of the school.
All promoters are required to follow the DfE School Admissions Code and the School Admission Appeals Code. Promoters will be required to participate in KCC’s co-ordinated scheme for the normal admission rounds and KCC’s In-year Fair Access procedures.
The School Building:
Land Securities will retain the freehold interest and grant KCC a 999 year lease. The Council will in turn grant the Academy trust a 125 year lease of the site and buildings.
The school is to be delivered in accordance with OJEU Procurement legislation by Land Securities. The school will be built to the agreed EFA specification for a 2FE primary school, plus the SRBP which comprises an additional dedicated teaching space which will be the hub for the resource, and 2-3 smaller areas which can be used flexibly to provide support, e.g. individual sensory/therapy; a calm space for small groups and time out when necessary. It is anticipated that the core facilities of the school building will allow expansion to 2 FE without the need for future adaptation.
Fixtures and fittings will be provided by the builder of the school with removables such as furniture, being funded by the Council via its revenue budget according to the existing protocol.
Revenue Funding:
1. Furniture and Equipment:
£6k per classroom will be provided towards the cost of furniture and equipment. This will be given to the new school’s leadership team for them to undertake procurement.
2. Start-up Costs:
KCC will provide a budget of £50,000 for start-up costs which will typically commence from January through to 31 August prior to the new school opening on 1 September 2016. On opening, the new school will be funded directly by the Education Funding Agency.
3. Pupil Growth Funding:
In accordance with the Pupil Growth Policy established by KCC and its Schools’ Funding Forum, the school will receive guaranteed funding, depending on the structure model agreed on (see Capacity section above). This will equate to:
- Model 1 - Year 1 equivalent to 30 pupils, in Year 2 equivalent to 60 pupils and Year 3 equivalent 90 pupils.
- Model 2 - Year 1 equivalent to 60 pupils, in Year 2 equivalent to 90 pupils and Year 3 equivalent 120 pupils.
The Indicative Budgets for the new primary school on Castle Hill can be found on the web page.
Application Process and Assessment Criteria:
Potential proposers are asked to complete a full application form on the webpage by 19 January 2015. The full application form should be sent electronically to: for the attention of Ian Watts, Area Education Officer for North Kent:
It is recognised that the Secretary of State will decide on which promoter she will enter into a Funding Agreement with. However KCC will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State as to its preferred provider, following evaluation according to our published criteria.
The DfE will only consider entering into a funding agreement with an approved sponsor. If you are a new proposer you will need to go through the DfE’s sponsor approval process and should contact the DfE as soon as possible and before submitting your full application form to us.
We will evaluate proposals received and provide the DfE with copies of the proposals and our assessment of them. Our assessment criteria (available on the webpage link above) mirrors, as far as possible, those used by the DfE. These focus on strategic vision, educational capacity and performance, financial planning and operational capacity and governance.
Additionally, we would expect promoters to demonstrate:
- How they will ensure that pupil achievement and rates of progress are above national expectations;
- How they will ensure vulnerable groups of pupils perform as well as other children;
- That they have a strong culture of working collaboratively with other education providers locally and in other parts of Kent;
- How they will support the development of a new community in Ebbsfleet, including their commitment to working in partnership with local stakeholders;
- How they will work in close partnership with KCC; and
- How they will deliver high quality provision for children with SEN and disabilities and children in care.
- How they will demonstrate they support UK democratic values.
You will need to submit a focused and coherent education plan as part of Section C of the application. Also you will need to submit a 3 year budget plan as part of Section D of the application.
Background documents:
- Kent Commissioning Plan for Education Provision 2013-2018
- Kent Children and Young People’s Joint Commissioning Board Strategy for Children and Young People with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (post consultation version June 2013):
- Site of Castle Hill School