Hands off Hove Park School march and picnic

Join the march & comedy picnic on Saturday 5 July

Hands off Hove Park School is calling on all supporters to join with a march and family picnic in Hove on 5 July. 

The plan is to meet at 10.30am on the lawns opposite the car-park of the King Alfred's Leisure Centre. Everyone is welcome to join the march including students, families, teachers and anyone who supports and values a fair, equal, excellent comprehensive education in local schools for all the children in our communities. We are marching to say NO to the academy proposal at Hove Park and NO to the continued and chaotic dismantling and deregulation of state schools. We are also marching to celebrate our local schools and help to protect the rights of hard-working, committed state-school teachers who put the education of children first.

Comedians Shappi Khorsandi and Mark Steel will join our family picnic from about 12.30pm for a Stand-Up For Hove Park School comedy show in Hove Park. Caroline Lucas MP will also be speaking.

Retune It will conduct an HOHPS marching band – bring your wheelie bins, metal buckets and pots & pans – and something to bash them with!

Let us know what you can bring to MAKE SOME NOISE. And arrive at 10.20am prompt for a rehearsal.

Don’t forget to bring bubbles, banners, badges and balloons too and add picnic food, friends and family for a great day out. The route for the march will go up Sackville Road and finish at Hove Park.

More info on www.handsoffhoveparkschool.wordpress.com.

Journalism courses at City College under threat

Tomorrow

Support our colleagues and members at City College - Journalism courses under threat

UCU members at City College Brighton and Hove will be striking Tuesday in opposition to the far-reaching cuts proposed by the current management.

There will be picket lines at all College buildings and entrances from 5.30am and throughout the morning, followed by speeches in Jubilee Square.

Staff are furious that the management have failed to listen to concerns about impacts of the cuts on the most vulnerable students. Instead, the Principal and the Chair of the Board of governors have purposely attempted to mislead staff, the public and local politicians with misinformation and propaganda.

The truth is that even with the recently agreed ‘concessions’, the management are still planning devastating cuts to provision for the people of Brighton and Hove:

• 220 staff at the College have been told ‘the proposed new structure does not have a role which is an obvious match for you’ 
• Support for the most vulnerable students is to be cut by two-thirds. This means that learners with mental health issues, disabilities, extra study support needs, safeguarding concerns, cared-for learners, right across all departments and courses will be at a much higher risk of dropping out or failing their course. The safeguarding risks that this poses will have a negative impact on future students and Ofsted grades. 
• The number of courses for adults with learning disabilities (ALDD) are planned to be greatly reduced, with fees will be introduced. 
• Increases in the teaching load for Team Leaders will result in students and staff suffering due to lack of support. We anticipate more long-term sickness and higher staff turnover – not least for Team Leaders themselves, who will have an impossible workload 
• Courses being delivered in far fewer guided learning hours will further add to a lack of support for more needy learners as staff will have to teach more courses to reach their teaching hours target, and will have a far higher workload in terms of marking, admin, recruitment and other non-teaching tasks. 

Please do what you can to support the strike on Tuesday. Head down to pickets send messages of support. Facebook group is here https://www.facebook.com/savecitycollegebrighton