Q1 Oldham’s Education Deficit

 Schools in Oldham have recently received public attention, but regrettably for all of the wrong reasons.

If Oldham were itself a pupil, there is no doubt that the Borough’s Annual School report would read: ‘once again failed to reach its potential and could do much better if it just applied itself’.

Oldham has the third worst record in the country for the number of infant pupils taught in classes of more than 30.

More than 2,300 children (nearly one in three) of five to seven year olds.

In junior schools more than 2,900 children are in classes over 30 in size.

In fact the average class size in Junior School in Oldham Borough is 28.9 pupils, the seventh highest in the country.

In addition nearly a fifth (20%) of Oldham pupils will not be able to attend their first choice Secondary School as places at the most popular schools do not meet demand.

This is understandable as demand at popular schools will continue to rise as Oldham’s Secondary Schools overall are judged poorly with only 36.5% of our pupils in ‘good or excellent’ Secondary Schools which is less than half the UK national average of 73.5%.

I am sure that the Leader will agree with me that much more needs to be done.

We are currently failing to give thousands of our children the opportunities they deserve.

Our Borough’s children deserve an excellent education to help reach further and higher education, set them up to become productive and well remunerated in the workplace, active citizens and positive parents and role models for their own children.

Let me be clear the Liberal Democrat Group will do all in its power to assist in changing the current state of affairs.

Labour has promised much for the Oldham Education Commission – indeed it would appear to have its work cut out – so can the Leader tell us all what this Administration is doing and will do to address the clear educational deficit in Oldham and when we might expect to have sight of the Commission’s final report, remembering its interim report in January was never published? 

Q2 Sunday Trading

The Chancellor proposed in last weeks’ Budget that areas such as Greater Manchester should be permitted to extend Sunday trading hours if we wish to do so.

Extended Sunday trading hours could provide additional jobs and additional business as a stimulant to the retail economy of our Borough, and may lead to the Borough becoming a ‘destination’ of choice for weekend shoppers accessing our retail offer by Metrolink, particularly if the Princes Gate development is the ‘game-changer’ the Leader has promised it will be. It could also be used to build upon the cultural offer town centre.

However it can also encroach on quality time and family life.

I would therefore like to ask the Leader whether within the new Combined Authority he would support the proposal for extended Sunday opening hours within Greater Manchester and specifically on Oldham, or not?

In essence would he echo the view that: “Sunday was the most miserable day of the week” before retail laws were relaxed, or support the view that limited opening hours on Sunday are sacrosanct as it is the only day that shop workers and their families can “bank on some time with their kids?”