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The Board of Education in Sark has published an open letter to all the island’s conseillers, in response to proposals being laid by the Education and Policy & Finance Committees.
You can read the letter in full below:
“Dear Conseillers,
“The propositions of the Education Committee and Policy & Finance Committee for the upcoming Chief Pleas have life-changing consequences for all families on Sark and any family that may want to relocate here. There has been no public consultation for these drastic proposed changes in the legal framework governing the education of Sark’s minor children ordinance and many parents are unaware of how these changes will affect them and their children.
“Those parents who have become aware have raised their concerns with us and some are asking the fundamental question of why they should continue to live on or support an island whose government is not willing to fulfil its legal obligations to provide free education for Sark children until at least the age of 16 and instead attempts to remove their legal obligation in a manner contrary to all principles of good governance and moral decency.
“Therefore, the Board of Education hereby formally requests that the Education Committee and the P&F Committee withdraw their propositions until such a time that appropriate public consultation has been carried out and more work has been done following that to ensure any proposed changes to any law or ordinance in relation to Education meets all local and international obligations in respect of the education of all Sark children of mandatory school age (which is currently 16 years) and all new laws are truly in the best interest of the children and their families.”
“The Board of Education considers both the content of the proposed changes to the law and the way in which these changes are being put to Chief Pleas to be deeply flawed for the following reasons.
“The urgency that surrounded the ‘Sark House’ does not apply to these propositions, which serve to rescind the responsibility of Chief Pleas to accommodate children in Guernsey, effectively freeing Sark Government of accountability for this year’s cohort of Post 13 pupils (not all of whom have been provided with accommodation for the start of term on 8th September 2022, less than 3 weeks away, which the Education Committee is obliged to provide).
“Abdicating government responsibility for certain areas of Education and placing the onus on parents is simply not acceptable in this day and age, especially not where this education is mandatory (as it is for children up to the age 16). The proposed changes in the ordinance are structured in such a way that education responsibilities will be ‘at the discretion of’ the “Government yet parents are expected to arrange what the government considers too onerous to arrange itself, despite the fact that that it is only Sark Government who can enter into agreements with the States of Guernsey and not a parent. Again, the Board urges the Education Committee to reconsider the structure and framework of their proposals and to hold a full consultation with all stakeholders.
“Without Government assistance in securing accommodation the offering of education in Guernsey (and similarly Jersey) becomes unviable for most Sark families. The new proposals instead heavily rely on UK boarding schools or online learning without any public consultation and without conducting adequate research by way of professional input into the quality of the education or how these changes would affect the Sark children and their parents on a personal level.”
“Although the Board is by no means against the idea of offering more choice to families for secondary education, we do not believe that these propositions, as they currently are, achieve that goal in a fair and effective manner.
“The change of ordinance to educate children in UK boarding schools does not appear to take into consideration the unavoidable extra costs that families will have to bear in having their child/children live in the mainland and travel regularly to and from the Bailiwick.
“Can this option truly be seen as fair and suitable for families with limited financial means?
"What about those children whose parents do not hold a UK passport and are not eligible for this option? Is having online learning as the only fully supported education option for them effective, fair and suitable? The Board would strongly argue that it is not.
“Ensuring that all children have equal access to the best education Sark can offer them is a core value that should not be compromised and by abdicating Government responsibility for accommodation in Guernsey the Island is not only doing a disservice to the children but also discriminating against non-British families who may want to move to Sark.
“With regard to State boarding schools in the UK, it is the Board’s understanding that tuition for these schools would currently be free of charge and that the funding paid by Sark would be covering the fees for board and lodging. In other words, Sark children would be receiving free education funded by the UK tax payer. How can Chief Pleas advocate for not paying education costs of Sark children?”
“How can they justify paying more than £10,000 p.a. for board and lodging for a Sark child to be educated in the UK but not offer the same amount for board and lodging for a Sark child to be educated in Guernsey or Jersey?
“What would happen when UK local councils are forced to cut costs in state schools (as they are having to do currently) and Sark children are suddenly expected to pay increased fees or worse yet asked to leave because legally these schools are not required to educate Sark children?
“Has the legality of sending our children to UK state boarding schools been investigated or are we attempting to take advantage of a loophole that may see us in a similar position of crisis further down the line? Do Sark children cease to be ‘Sark children’ once they are attending a boarding school in the UK? There is service level agreement for Secondary Education of Sark children in Guernsey but none has been negotiated with the UK or Jersey.
“It was a fundamental oversight that no agreement was entered into with Guernsey regarding the accommodation of Sark school children (at the time when entering into the agreement for secondary education with Guernsey). The solution now cannot be to send Sark children to Jersey or the UK without first ensuring that there is a service level agreement in place for education and accommodation in those places. Chief Pleas must take the time to learn from previous mistakes and formulate a robust education plan with a structured system that considers all eventualities, caters to the unique needs of Sark and most importantly offers children and families a stable and secure education for the foreseeable future.
“In light of the ‘Sark House’ propositions not being passed by Chief Pleas, this being the preferred option for the majority of Sark children and parents, our moral obligation to meet the needs of the children and their families is even more pertinent. This is why a period of public consultation, specifically consultation with all parents and not only those of this year’s cohort, must happen before decisions of this magnitude are made. It is no exaggeration to say that should these propositions go ahead as they currently are suggested Sark will see families moving away from the island and less families will be relocating here. Moreover, there are likely to be many other unintended consequences further down the line to making these fundamental changes. Please take the time to listen to the Board of Education and the community so that we may avoid this happening.
“Kind regards, Board of Education”
