Equality impact assessment (EIA) form: evidencing paying due regard to protected characteristics
(Form updated April 2019)
Proposal to close Amalgamate Caedmon College Whitby and Eskdale School from 1st September 2024
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If you would like this information in another language or format such as Braille, large print or audio, please contact the Communications Unit on 01609 53 2013 or email communications@northyorks.gov.uk.
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Equality Impact Assessments (EIAs) are public documents. EIAs accompanying reports going to County Councillors for decisions are published with the committee papers on our website and are available in hard copy at the relevant meeting. To help people to find completed EIAs we also publish them in the Equality and Diversity section of our website. This will help people to see for themselves how we have paid due regard in order to meet statutory requirements.
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Name of Directorate and Service Area |
CYPS Strategic Planning Team
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Lead Officer and contact details |
Andrew Dixon, County Hall
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Names and roles of other people involved in carrying out the EIA |
Matt George, Strategic Planning Officer John Lee, Strategic Planning Officer
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How will you pay due regard? e.g. working group, individual officer |
LA Officers and School Governing Board
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When did the due regard process start? |
13 December 2022
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Section 1. Please describe briefly what this EIA is about. (e.g. are you starting a new service, changing how you do something, stopping doing something?)
The proposal is amalgamate Caedmon College Whitby and Eskdale School. This would result in the technical closure of Eskdale School and the Eskdale site, and increase the planned admission number for the amalgamated school, now requested with effect from 1 September 2024
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Section 2. Why is this being proposed? What are the aims? What does the authority hope to achieve by it? (e.g. to save money, meet increased demand, do things in a better way.)
The Governing Board set out three linked factors as the reasons for their proposal to amalgamate Caedmon College Whitby and Eskdale School: low pupil numbers, significant financial challenges at both schools and an imperative to give the best education and curriculum to the young people of Whitby. These are set out below.
Pupil numbers The Whitby Secondary Partnership 11-18 Capacity has approximately 2080 school places. Numbers of secondary aged pupils have been falling steadily across the catchment area over the last 10 years (see Table 1 below). In January 2023 there were 406 pupils on roll at Eskdale, with a capacity of 550, and 783 pupils on roll at Caedmon College, with a capacity of 1530. There is therefore a surplus of over 40% of places in Whitby.
Table 1
The Federation currently operates two separate budgets. Operating two schools across three sites brings a significant financial cost. Both school budgets have numerous financial challenges that need to be addressed. Each school is subject to a Notice of Financial Concern. This notice is issued by the Local Authority to governing boards where, in the opinion of officers, actions need to be taken to safeguard the financial position of the local authority or the school. Under Local Management of Schools, schools are responsible for their own budgets. It is for heads and governors to determine at school level how to optimise the use of resources and maximise value for money.
Standards and Curriculum
The Governing Board view the proposal as offering the opportunity to deliver a broader curriculum offer with wider opportunities and development of skills to meet the need of students and the local community. They believe that any strategy to address the low pupil numbers and financial challenges without moving to become one school across two sites would hamper educational and curriculum improvement. Continuing to spend disproportionate amounts of their budget on premises costs across three sites would divert valuable budget away from the delivery of high-quality education.
Caedmon College Whitby was last inspected by Ofsted in February 2022, this was an initial (section 8) inspection. The reported outcome was that there has been no change to the school’s overall judgement of good, however the evidence gathered suggested that the inspection grade might not be as high if a full inspection were carried out at that time, and so the next inspection will therefore be a graded (section 5) inspection. The previous full Ofsted inspection took place in February 2017 which judged all outcomes to be good.
Eskdale School was last inspected by Ofsted in November 2022. The reported outcome was that there has been no change to the school’s overall judgement of good as a result of this ungraded (section 8) inspection, however, the evidence gathered suggested that the inspection grade might not be as high if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now. The next inspection will therefore be a graded inspection The previous full Ofsted inspection took place in November 2017 which judged all outcomes to be good.
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Section 3. What will change? What will be different for customers and/or staff?
If this proposal went ahead, Eskdale School would close on 31st August 2024 and all pupils on roll at Eskdale at that time would automatically be placed on roll at the amalgamated school which would technically be a continuation of Caedmon College Whitby. Staff and pupils at Eskdale school would be expected to travel to work and learn at another site.
The proposal put forward by the Federated Governing Board of the schools (Whitby Secondary Partnership) would see all 11-16 pupils educated on the Normanby site which is one of two sites, along with the Scoresby site, which currently accommodate Caedmon College Whitby. The Governing Board would intend to continue using the Scoresby site to accommodate the 16-18 pupils at the school as a Sixth Form College.
The published admission number (PAN) of the newly amalgamated school would increase to 240.
Staff groups may be subject to a separate consultation if the proposal is approved. A separate EIA would set out the impact on staff at that point in time. |
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Section 4. Involvement and consultation (What involvement and consultation has been done regarding the proposal and what are the results? What consultation will be needed and how will it be done?)
The consultation period ran from 20 February 2023 to 31 March 2023. Consultation documents were distributed to a wide range of stakeholders Two public engagement meetings were held on 8th March 2023. The consultation document, responses, and notes of the public meeting are included as pendices to the report to the Executive on 18 April 2023.
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Section 5. What impact will this proposal have on council budgets? Will it be cost neutral, have increased cost or reduce costs?
Please explain briefly why this will be the result.
School revenue funding Any annual savings to the Dedicated Schools Grant arising from the closure, if approved, would remain within the ring-fenced Dedicated Schools Grant as part of the funding for all schools. Any surplus revenue or capital balances in the event of a school closure would be allocated in line with the Closing School Accounting Policy.
Where in the funding period, a school has been established or is subject to a prescribed alteration as a result of the closure of a school, a local authority may add an amount to the budget share of the new or enlarged school to reflect all or part of the unspent budget share, including any surplus carried over from previous funding periods, of the closing school for the funding period in which it closes.
Transport costs Due to the proximity of the two schools, there are unlikely to be significant variance in the transport costs compared to current expenditure. Eligibility for Home to School Transport would be assessed against the current legislation.
Use of budget on school improvement Governors have stated that any strategy to address the low pupil numbers and financial challenges without moving to become one school across two sites would hamper educational and curriculum improvement. Continuing to spend disproportionate amounts of their budget on premises costs across three sites would divert valuable budget away from the delivery of high-quality education.
Furthermore, governors are concerned that delaying making this proposal would make it necessary to take on other measures to meet financial challenges and Governors could not justify short term cost saving measures which they believe would impact high quality education when they believe that there was a long-term sustainable model available.
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Section 6. How will this proposal affect people with protected characteristics? |
No impact |
Make things better |
Make things worse |
Why will it have this effect? Provide evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc. |
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Age |
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x |
Across the Federation the schools currently provide education provision for pupils ages 11-18. The proposal allows for a continuation for provision of that age range. Some consultation responses have indicated concerns about the impact on pupils who are undertaking external examinations during the implementation period. Some comments highlight the disruption to education already experienced as a result of the Covid pandemic.
Staff groups may be subject to a separate consultation if the proposal is approved. A separate EIA would set out the impact on staff at that point in time. |
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Disability |
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x |
x |
Pupils –
The schools in the Federation are currently mainstream schools
offering universal provision. At present across the two schools the
Federation have 32 pupils on roll who currently have an EHCP and
137 access SEN Support. The leadership and governors do not
underestimate how much of a challenge changing educational
provision may be for some of these young people.
As is the case for all schools, the amalgamated school would be required to follow the statutory requirements set out in the Children & Families Act 2014, SEND regulations & SEND code of practice. The Whitby Secondary Partnership has produced a Vision for the newly amalgamated school - A Quality First Education for Whitby. This includes the following regarding Inclusion - SEND/Pastoral:
It is essential that within a larger school environment we do our best to make each student feel a part of the school community and we will provide a high quality pastoral structure to support our students and maintain relationships with parents/carers. We will continue to dedicate time to developing an inclusive approach to education for our students, providing space, staff and resources for students who require additional support using the expanded resources that will be available through the proposed amalgamation.
The pastoral and inclusion structure of the newly amalgamated school will provide a larger team for students to be able to access dedicated members of staff who are responsible for student welfare. It is our aim to establish a student centred inclusive school, where students are individuals and as a school community we all take the time and effort to work together and get to know each other ultimately as one quality first provision. The launch of the Targeted Mainstream Provision in January 2023 will be a significant part of our whole school inclusion approach and will provide significant support for students as well as training for our staff.
Expertise will be utilised from the County Council to provide appropriate SEN support.
The school will continue to meet the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 which obligates it to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate disabled individuals as employees or pupils.
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Sex |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Race |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Gender reassignment |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Sexual orientation |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Religion or belief |
x |
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No impact is anticipated. |
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Pregnancy or maternity |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Marriage or civil partnership |
x |
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No impact is anticipated.
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Section 7. How will this proposal affect people who… |
No impact |
Make things better |
Make things worse |
Why will it have this effect? Provide evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc. |
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..live in a rural area? |
x
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This proposal allows for sufficient capacity at the school to accommodate all pupils living within the catchment area.
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…have a low income? |
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x |
Responses to the consultation identified concerns over the potential cost of new school uniform if the proposal went ahead.
Governors have stated that, in line with DfE guidance, they will keep branded uniform items to a minimum and they intend to support families with the initial outlay for some items of uniform if the amalgamation is approved. |
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…are carers (unpaid family or friend)? |
x |
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No impact is anticipated. |
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Section 8. Geographic impact – Please detail where the impact will be (please tick all that apply) |
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North Yorkshire wide |
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Craven district |
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Hambleton district |
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Harrogate district |
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Richmondshire district |
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Ryedale district |
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Scarborough district |
x
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Selby district |
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If you have ticked one or more districts, will specific town(s)/village(s) be particularly impacted? If so, please specify below. |
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Whitby and the wider catchment area for the two schools will be impacted |
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Section 9. Will the proposal affect anyone more because of a combination of protected characteristics? (e.g. older women or young gay men) State what you think the effect may be and why, providing evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc.
All staff and pupils at the school would experience changes under these proposals that staff and governors would need to manage sensitively. There is no evidence that this proposal would affect any staff or pupils with a combination of protected characteristics more.
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Section 10. Next steps to address the anticipated impact. Select one of the following options and explain why this has been chosen. (Remember: we have an anticipatory duty to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled people can access services and work for us) |
Tick option chosen |
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1. No adverse impact - no major change needed to the proposal. There is no potential for discrimination or adverse impact identified. |
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2. Adverse impact - adjust the proposal - The EIA identifies potential problems or missed opportunities. We will change our proposal to reduce or remove these adverse impacts, or we will achieve our aim in another way which will not make things worse for people. |
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3. Adverse impact - continue the proposal - The EIA identifies potential problems or missed opportunities. We cannot change our proposal to reduce or remove these adverse impacts, nor can we achieve our aim in another way which will not make things worse for people. (There must be compelling reasons for continuing with proposals which will have the most adverse impacts. Get advice from Legal Services) |
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4. Actual or potential unlawful discrimination - stop and remove the proposal – The EIA identifies actual or potential unlawful discrimination. It must be stopped. |
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Section 11. If the proposal is to be implemented how will you find out how it is really affecting people? (How will you monitor and review the changes?)
Monitoring of school performance is carried out through the Council’s School Improvement team and external inspections are undertaken by Ofsted. Monitoring of sufficiency of school places in the area will be undertaken by the CYPS Strategic Planning Team. Individual pupils accessing support through EHCPs are subject to an annual review process, and if the proposal is approved consideration of the amalgamation will be made as part of the annual review. |
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Section 12. Action plan. List any actions you need to take which have been identified in this EIA, including post implementation review to find out how the outcomes have been achieved in practice and what impacts there have actually been on people with protected characteristics. |
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Action |
Lead |
By when |
Progress |
Monitoring arrangements |
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Develop plans to transition the students from Caedmon and Eskdale into an amalgamated school with least disruption to their education |
School leadership team |
July 2024 |
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Federated Governing Board
· Minutes · Published transition plans · Pupil voice · Parent survey |
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School staff to access relevant expertise to support the transition arrangements for pupils with SEND
Annual reviews for pupils with EHCPS to consider the impact of the amalgamation on individual needs.
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School Leadership Team / SENCos
Supported by the Council’s SEND and Inclusion services |
July 2024 |
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Federated Governing Board
· Minutes · Individual transition plans where required · Pupil voice · Parent survey (parents of pupils with SEND) · EHCPs/annual reviews |
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Provide support to mitigate the cost of new / replacement uniform items arising as a result of the proposal |
School leadership team |
July 2024 |
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Federated Governing Board
· Minutes · Communications re: Uniform changes · Pupil voice · Parent survey
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Section 13. Summary Summarise the findings of your EIA, including impacts, recommendation in relation to addressing impacts, including any legal advice, and next steps. This summary should be used as part of the report to the decision maker.
The purpose of the consultation and proposed decision is to ensure that the children are provided with the best secondary education provision in the Whitby area in a sustainable, stable and effective manner. Whilst it is recognised that there may be adverse impact upon those with protected characteristic of having Disability, particularly during the immediate period after the decision, the proposal has potential for more positive impacts, including a larger combined Inclusion resource, combined SEN expertise and the opportunity for a more efficient use of SEN funding, that will result if these proposals are implemented. As these proposals develop any adverse impacts will be carefully monitored, and all reasonable mitigations will be taken.
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Section 14. Sign off section
This full EIA was completed by:
Name: M George Job title: Strategic Planning Officer Directorate: CYPS Completion date: 6 April 2023
Authorised by relevant Assistant Director (signature): A Newbold |