Further to Minute No. 89 of the meeting held on 16 February 2017, the Cabinet considered the report of the Head of Schools and Families which provided details of the outcome of the consultation on the proposed merger of South Sefton College and Hugh Baird College and proposals to publish a Statutory Notice relating to this proposal.
Members of the Cabinet commended the proposals set out in the report which had been produced as a result of the inclusion of South Sefton College in the Liverpool City Region Area Review.
Decision Made: That
(1) the responses to the statutory consultation process be noted;
(2) approval be given to the merger between Hugh Baird College and South Sefton College as the option which is in the best interests of students and staff;
(3) the estimated financial implications associated with the two options presented within the report be noted:
(4) approval be given to the funding of the potential merger as set out in the report, including the use of the Closed Schools Earmarked Reserve (£1.481m) and the Transforming Sefton Reserve (£0.645m);
(5) officers be authorised to progress the merger negotiations with Hugh Baird and South Sefton College; and
(6) approval be given to the publication of the Statutory Notice on the discontinuance of South Sefton College in order to enable the merger with Hugh Baird College to take place.
Reasons for Decision:
The Local Authority has the statutory power to close a maintained school following the statutory process detailed in the report.
Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:
None.