28.09.21
Dear All
Cranbrook and Sissinghurst Parish Council have just been informed that the Leigh Trust, who took over the High Weald Academy 3 months ago, now wish to turn it into an offshoot of Snowfields, a Special Needs school in Bearstead, and abandon nonselective education in Cranbrook.
This would mean that from September 2022, all secondary school children across several parishes will have to take a bus to Mascalls, Cornwallis, Homewood, Uplands, or other schools.
The local Parish Councils think this is a shocking proposal, forcing all our children to spend 3 hours on a bus every day. It will also damage the fabric of our society.
High Weald Academy was rebuilt 2 years ago at a cost of £12 million.
The building should educate 1200 pupils, but Leigh Trust plan to educate about 140 Special Needs Students on the site.
We support provision of special needs places, but believe the campus is large enough to maintain secondary education.
The Parish Council is asking for your help make the case to the secretary of State that non selective secondary education should stay.
Please email your concerns, thoughts and ideas to maintain non selective secondary education in Cranbrook to:
highwealdclosure@gmail.com
and also copy us with any messages you send Leigh Academy Trust on their consultation website, so we can collate them into our argument.
The documents from Leigh Trust are here:
https://mcusercontent.com/23230ac57c8a70b853ca3bbb6/files/8404b454-b1ae-8409-0a1c-9738ee6a9d66/Expansion_of_Snowfields_Academy_Consultation_Pack.pdf
https://mcusercontent.com/23230ac57c8a70b853ca3bbb6/files/2db1e65b-0179-1d18-cdf3-dd60c4299765/Updated_Snowfields_Statement_of_Provision.pdf
