McMahon hits out over free school project

A GROUP planning an Oldham free school staffed by ex-military personnel has been criticised by council leader Jim McMahon for its “lack of professionalism” .

In an e-mail to Phoenix Free School he said: “The education of our young people is worth far too much to risk what feels like a poorly thought through project.”

He sent it after Phoenix insisted it had “made it clear” to a senior council education officer in September 2011 that the group wanted to open in the former Breeze Hill school.

Phoenix wasn’t given the go-ahead to open a school until this May — less than a month after the council had received permission to dispose of Breeze Hill and begun demolition. The school was one of six former secondary school sites being offered for sale and likely to make the council a total of around £2.5m.

Phoenix says it repeatedly phoned Councillor McMahon in May but wasn’t put through and didn’t receive a reply to an e-mail.

Councillor McMahon claims the only email he has received was at the start of the campaign to stop the demolition of Breeze Hill. He insisted the building, empty since last November, was substandard and demolition essential for safety saveing the council £14,000 a month in rates, utilities and security costs.

“There appears to be a naive view that giving a site to a free school (or anyone else for that matter) has no cost. This is not correct,” added Councillor McMahon.

Free schools are independent but publicly funded. Once approved, they work with the Department for Education to find a site. The council is already negotiating over the future of the former south Chadderton School, which is wanted by the Collective Spirit free school.

Councillor McMahon said: “Oldham council is firmly of the view that the existing family of schools meets the collective needs of the people of Oldham. From what I have seen so far, I am not convinced that either Collective Spirit or Phoenix add any value to education in the borough.”