Isle of Wight primary school closures decision delayed
A decision on the fate of five Isle of Wight primary schools has been delayed. Councillors agreed last night to defer the vote on whether to close Oakfield in Ryde, Brading, Cowes, Wroxhall and Arreton primary schools.But they reassured parents the council would still be able to meet a deadline of mid April to assess and decide applications for September 2025 school starters.Isle of Wight Council officers have argued school closures are necessary to improve education standards and make schools financially sustainable.
A statutory four-week consultation for people to have their say on the proposals ran until February 3rd.The corporate scrutiny meeting of councillors on Tuesday said it had not had enough time to read and digest a 1,700 page report given to them three days before their meeting.The cross-party body said 'any effective and meaningful scrutiny' of the cabinet's expected decision to close 5 primary schools would be 'open to ridicule'.Accepting the recommendation to delay, cabinet member for education, councillor Jonathan Bacon said he regretted "any anxiety" that the delay would cause to school communities concerned.He added staff would now have two weeks to finalise school place allocation before national offer day for primary education on Wednesday April 16th. The vote will now take place on Thursday 20th March after a corporate scrutiny meeting on Tuesday 18th March.
You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
Vile LA rioters target agents at their hotels and threaten to 'burn them' as law enforcement faces death threats
In vile posts calling for violence against law enforcement, the hotels where federal agents are staying in Los Angeles have been released online, with one agitator saying 'burn them.' The exact address of where Border Patrol agents stayed in Ranch Cucamonga, California just outside LA was posted on Instagram by a self-proclaimed 'leftists'. 'ICE at Hilton, car filled goggles, tuff ties, and riot shields,' the video said, even though the cars were clearly marked Border Patrol, which is a sister agency of Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE. Border Patrol has been called in to help ICE as it carried out immigration arrests in Los Angeles last week. Additionally, Border Patrol has always been able to operate within 100 miles of the US-Mexico border on its own. 'Burn them,' posted Instagram users @bobbygee57_ in response to the reel showing the agent's location. 'Got a match,' asked @joseflocas. Another user urged others to damage the tax-payer funded vehicles. Some of the commentators urges violence against Border Patrol agents 'Pop the tires and use spark plugs to break their windows.' Border Patrol agents have since relocated. 'A lot of hotels are compromised,' one agent on the ground told He speculated they might have to sleep inside federal buildings to stay safe. The agency's intelligence team had been notified of the threats against its officers. A second post made unverified claims that ICE agents had been kicked out of a hotel in Pasadena. It shared the new hotel address where the they posters claimed the agents were moving to. The @Stopicenet account shared an image of a Border Patrol truck engulfed in flames. A Free Palestine group shared instructions on how to organize against the cops in LA, saying peaceful protests don't work. 'Riots downtown are great, but what can you accomplish in small numbers, wearing a mask at night, with your phone at home,' posted @solidaritysfl. 'Showing up to a sidewalk protest with protest marshals empowers counterrevolutionary entities (liberals) to drain all the energy and radicalism into Instagram photo ops and call-your-representatives nonsense. That's not going to work. It never has. There are so many other options. If you're all alone, show up to your local Food Not Bombs (in a mask) and let's talk. We are everywhere.' Federal officials have made if clear that violence against agents will not be tolerated. 'Our law enforcement officers are just doing their jobs. Violence and intimidation against federal law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,' ICE posted to X. 'Assaulting, harassing and doxing ICE officers and special agents is against the law. The Justice Department will prosecute you for these federal crimes!' Assaulting, harassing and doxing ICE officers and special agents is against the law. @thejusticedept will prosecute you for these federal crimes! — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) June 9, 2025 While most of the protestors in LA have been peaceful, some have turned to violence, including setting cars on fire and throwing items at police during demonstrations The Trump administration has argued that agent safety is one of the reason the president took the unprecedented step of calling in the national guard, despite opposition from both the governor and mayor of LA. While most protestor in LA have been peaceful, some have set cars on fire and hurled items at officers and their vehicles since the clashes started on Friday.
Western Telegraph
a day ago
- Western Telegraph
Gaza-bound aid boat with Greta Thunberg on board arrives in Israel after seizure
The boat, accompanied by Israel's navy, arrived in Ashdod in the evening, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. It published a photo on social media of Ms Thunberg after disembarking. The 'Selfie Yacht' docked at Ashdod Port a short while ago. The passengers are currently undergoing medical examinations to ensure they are in good health. — Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) June 9, 2025 The 12 activists were undergoing medical checks to ensure they are in good health, the ministry said. They were expected to be held at a detention facility in Ramle before being deported, according to Adalah, a legal rights group representing them. The activists had set out to protest against Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which is among the deadliest and most destructive since the Second World War, and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid. Both have put the territory of around two million Palestinians at risk of famine. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which organised the voyage, said the activists were 'kidnapped by Israeli forces' while trying to deliver desperately needed aid. 'The ship was unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted and its life-saving cargo – including baby formula, food and medical supplies – confiscated,' it said in a statement. It said the ship was seized in international waters about 200 kilometres (120 miles) from Gaza, and Adalah asserted that Israel had 'no legal authority' to take it over. Israel's Foreign Ministry portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying on social media that 'the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel'. This wasn't humanitarian aid. It's Instagram activism David Mencer, Israeli government spokesperson It said the activists would return to their home countries and the aid would be sent to Gaza through established channels. It circulated footage of what appeared to be Israeli military personnel handing out sandwiches and water to the activists, who were wearing life vests. Israeli officials said the flotilla carried what amounted to less than a truckload of aid. 'This wasn't humanitarian aid. It's Instagram activism,' Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said. 'Meanwhile, Israel has delivered over 1,200 truckloads in the last two weeks. So who's really feeding Gaza and who's really feeding their own ego? Greta was not bringing aid, she was bringing herself.' After its two-and-a-half month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers and experts have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. About 600 trucks of aid entered daily during the ceasefire that Israel ended in March. An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after two drones attacked the vessel in international waters off Malta, organisers said. I urge all my friends, family and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible Greta Thunberg The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the ship's front section. The Madleen set sail from Sicily a week ago. Along the way, it stopped on Thursday to rescue four migrants who had jumped overboard to avoid being detained by Libya'a coast guard. 'I urge all my friends, family and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible,' Ms Thunberg said in a pre-recorded message released after the ship was halted. Adalah, the rights group, said in a statement that 'the arrest of the unarmed activists, who operated in a civilian manner to provide humanitarian aid, amounts to a serious breach of international law'. Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, was among those on board. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies towards the Palestinians. She was among six French citizens on board. What's been happening since early March is a disgrace, a disgrace French President Emmanuel Macron French President Emmanuel Macron called for consular protection and the repatriation of the French citizens. 'Most of all, France calls for a ceasefire as quickly as possible and the lifting of the humanitarian blockade. This is a scandal, unacceptable, that is playing out in Gaza. What's been happening since early March is a disgrace, a disgrace,' Mr Macron said. Next week, Mr Macron co-hosts a conference at the UN on a two-state solution and recently said France should move towards recognising a Palestinian state. Swedish foreign minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said the crew and passengers were aware of the risks, Swedish news agency TT reported. Ms Stenergard said the ministry's assessment is that no-one was in danger and there was no need for consular support. Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of a blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. Israel says the blockade is needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms, while critics say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza's Palestinian population. Israel sealed off Gaza from all aid in the early days of the war ignited by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7 2023 but later relented under US pressure. Displaced Palestinians walk past the ruins of destroyed buildings along the Gaza City shoreline (Jehad Alshrafi/AP) In early March, shortly before Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas, the country again blocked all imports, including food, fuel and medicine. Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted 251 hostages. Most have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas still holds 55 hostages, more than half believed to be dead. Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but has said that women and children make up most of the dead. The war has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of the population, leaving people almost completely dependent on international aid. Efforts to broker another truce have been deadlocked for months. Hamas says it will only release the remaining hostages in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal. Israel has vowed to continue the war until all the captives are returned and Hamas is defeated, or disarmed and exiled.
Metro
a day ago
- Metro
Billie Eilish's brother Finneas tear-gassed at protest in Los Angeles
Billie Eilish's brother Finneas has claimed that he was tear-gassed by the National Guard at a 'very peaceful' protest in Los Angeles. The singer-songwriter, 27, took to social media to detail his experience, sharing his message to more than four million followers on Instagram. 'Tear gassed almost immediately at the very peaceful protest downtown – they're inciting this,' he wrote. The musician had attended a protest against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) department's operations in Los Angeles over the weekend. The protests, which began on Friday and carried on through until Sunday, saw numerous people stage a peaceful demonstration, campaigning against ICE's raids of several workplaces in Los Angeles for alleged immigration violations. President Donald Trump authorised the deployment of the National Guard in response. On Sunday, Finneas wrote on an Instagram Story: 'F**k ICE.' His next post saw him repost a message to National Guard and military personnel who do not wish to partake in Trump's order: 'If you are National Guard or Active Duty military and you are being ordered to violate the Constitutional rights of US citizens, then this is the number to the GI Rights Hotline. There is support, you don't have to go through with it.' Several celebrities have banded together to criticise ICE and the military reaction to protests across Los Angeles, including Eva Longoria and Chrissy Teigen. On X, Longoria shared a post from California Governor Gavin Newsom, which criticises Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over his threat to deploy active-duty Marines in response to the protests. Newsom described the threat as 'deranged behaviour,' while Longoria added that it was 'Un-American' while also sharing a video of a woman being separated from her child during an ICE raid. Teigen shared various posts in support of the protests on her Instagram Stories, including a link to a mass protest on June 14. Massive raids are underway in major cities across the US as part of Trump's pledge to arrest 3,000 suspected illegal immigrants per day. One in Los Angeles descended into chaos, as counterprotests led to multiple arrests, allegedly without warrants. Two Home Depot stores, a clothing shop called Ambient Apparel, and other locations were raided by ICE agents in the predominantly Latino city of Paramount. The President issued an executive order, posted to the White House website, outlining Trump's plan to prevent undocumented immigrants from 'invading' communities and costing state and local governments. And a policy which previously restricted officers' abilities to arrest undocumented immigrants at 'sensitive' locations, such as schools, churches and hospitals, was rolled back. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you.
