Tag Archives: Bannerman Road Primary School

EASTON ROAD RAGE

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All Hallows

There’s still a lot of anger in Easton as the final phase of a council traffic scheme, designed by Sustrans, is implemented with the CLOSURE of All Hallows Road at the Bannerman Road School site.

Critics of the HAREBRAINED TRANSPORT SCHEME claim that in a ward of approximately 14,000 people, just 855 people – about six per cent of residents – were involved in an expensive £180k ‘consultation’ based on hookie stats such as the claim that “39,883… vehicles enter and/or leave the area during a 24 hour period” (by comparison, 60,000 vehicles use the M32 every day). However, since NO RECORDS of this consultation were kept, the council can’t confirm that the people who took part even live in Easton and they can’t deny that the same people attended multiple consultation meetings.

The closure of All Hallows Road is especially controversial as this “additional filtered permeability” didn’t appear until the final phase of the consultation which had less than 92 participants. So, even assuming every single one of them was enthusiastic, we’re talking about LESS THAN 1% OF THE POPULATION in favour. Residents say they were never offered any different ideas or plans. There was never any vote held nor public meetings to discuss options. There was just an announcement “WE’RE CLOSING THE ROAD“. The closure has been opposed at public meetings; opposed in a resident-run survey of over 1,000 people and opposed by local businesses, faith groups and the community centre.

Residents recently fought the Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to close the road and requested evidence of how the closure would achieve any of the things being claimed for it such as a REDUCTION IN TRAFFIC, CLEANER AIR and SAFER STREETS? Indeed, they asked, how would the council even measure success since they made no effort to quantify their aims, goals or success level?

A resident says, “They are literally spending money with no way to tell if it has done any good. And you know that this is the case because they have REFUSED at every opportunity to address any of our concerns. Instead, at every phase we have been told “PEOPLE WANT THIS” and “IT MEETS OUR TRANSPORT OBJECTIVES“. Who wants this? Because I can find no-one outside of a tiny group of a dozen people who actually want it. How does it meet their transport objectives? Which ones? In what way?”

Residents continue to say there is an alternative. Close the road between 8am and 9am and 3pm and 4pm. Two hours a day and open on weekends. Simple. Straightforward. Protects the children, makes the area safer at the times when it needs to be safer and doesn’t disrupt traffic into well-known accident hotspots. The council and their councillors just say, “IT’S TOO LATE“.  

Welcome to democracy, Bristol-style.











SELF-POLICING ACADEMY IN RACISM ROW

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‘No institutional racism here’ says accused institution – case closed!

Definitely nothing to see here – so says head teacher Gill Kelly

Over in Redfield is City Academy, a secondary school for 1,100 youngsters and one of the largest employers in East Bristol. Like the ward in which it sits, Easton – where up to 40% of residents are from Black & Minority Ethnic (BME) backgrounds – it’s a diverse environment, both across the student body and in its staff.

So you would think that when a black worker complained of INSTITUTIONAL RACISM, a full and proper investigation would ensue – to weed out any racists, to ensure a better environment for pupils and adults alike, and to reassure local people that such prejudice would not be tolerated in the community’s school.

Well, think again. A staff member directly affected by what they considered racism wrote to colleagues asking them to come forward if they had any similar experience at the Academy.

Within minutes an email came down from the office of Gill Kelly, the Executive Principal. The message was clear: ‘there is no institutional racism at City Academy’, END OF DISCUSSION. So concluded the fastest investigation in living memory – the (white) headteacher had spoken, and so no further action was needed.

Meanwhile, Kelly was also undertaking a major restructuring, making MANY STAFF REDUNDANT thanks to budget cuts so deep the school’s ability to teach is threatened. Some affected had served the school for twenty years, going back to when it was state funded in the days before the One World Learning Trust was given responsibility to run it in 2003.

So staff decided to have a send-off for their ‘downsized’ colleagues, with nibbles in the school canteen after students had departed for the day. ‘Not on your nelly,’ said Kelly, who cancelled the party, just in case anyone mentioned the topics of racism or speedy investigations. And then she phoned in sick. She may well have been sick, but not half as sick as the staff are of her.

The employees being made redundant were then individually ‘helped’ off the premises in an attempt to segregate them from other staff members. What a way to treat people after years of service! Needless to say, they all met down the boozer anyway for a good chinwag…

Of course, the way senior management at City treats staff is no surprise to many workers, not least to those from nearby Bannerman Road primary, which ‘federated’ with the Academy last year in what was meant to be a partnership of equals. However, once the signatures were dry, the original agreement was IGNORED, and Kelly installed herself as line manager of Bannerman Road’s Ofsted-commended headteacher Paula Shore. And guess what? Shore is, yes, black.

Just because you are an academy, and answerable to nobody but your own board of directors, does not mean you can ignore the issue of institutional racism, or concerns of BME workers in our community’s school.

So conduct a proper investigation, you bastards!