My Lamma Forums

Everytimeagoodtime

You may or may not know that the ESF (English Schools Foundation) have changed the catchment zones for Kennedy School. Now children from Lamma Island who want to go the ESF Kennedy School are unable to go and will have to go the Bradbury School which is located on Stubbs Rd.

This causes many problems. But the main concern is that children who apply this year will not go to the same school that the rest of the children they have grown up with go to and as Lamma is a unique community it would seem a shame.

There are all so logistical issues. The children going to Bradbury will have to be on the seven o’clock ferry and will have to catch the 3:50 ferry home. That’s too long for these young kids (4-5 year olds) to be out.

Also, the Bradbury school is located on a busy main road and the playground is right next to it. Bradbury also has fewer facilities with only one gym for the kids to use, where as the Kennedy school has an ICT suite, a music studio, a large library and a specialist room for Mandarin teaching. It is also located opposite the Stanley Ho sports ground which is regularly used for swimming lessons for all children in years 2-6, and their playing field for games sessions.

The change in catchment zones will also affect children who already have brothers/sisters at Kennedy school. Parents will have to decide if they want their children to go to school at Kennedy with their brothers/sisters or go to the Bradbury with their friends that they went to kindergarten with.

A group of concerned parents have got together to see if they can change the new zoning policy and we are looking for support. In the next few days there will a petition that you can sign in support. It will be located at the Green Cottage.

The kids of Lamma have been going to Kennedy for the past 15 years and we want them to keep going. Please sign the petition and show your support.

Thanking you in advance.

Everytimeagoodtime.

Everytimeagoodtime · Posted: Wed Jan 17, 2007 7:11 pm Post subject:

I forgot to mention, Please could you spread the word about these changes to the zoning policies around Lamma as (sorry Gung) not everybody on Lamma uses these forums.

Everytimeagoodtime · Posted: Wed Jan 17, 2007 10:29 pm Post subject:

Comments anyone?

nobby · over 500 messages posted Joined: 27 Sep 2005 Posts: 535

Why? are we being bounced off to Stubbs Road because of the bloody cyberport?

Everytimeagoodtime · Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 12:19 am Post subject:

They claim to be oversubscribed at Kennedy School.

Everytimeagoodtime · Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 7:50 pm Post subject:

Just putting it back at the list. But I would like more comments if there are any out there?

Insomniac · Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 9:31 pm Post subject:

As Kennedy school is the feederschool for West Island School (winner of 'most outstanding school award'), which secondary school is Bradbury the feederschool for?

nobby · over 500 messages posted Joined: 27 Sep 2005 Posts: 535

According to the ESF website WIS is still zoned for outlying Islands!!

Insomniac · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 5:04 am Post subject: Photograph

A big thank -you to everyone who turned up today for the children's photograph at YSW ferry pier. Very hectic but should be just as effective!!!!!!!!

Lamma-Gung · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 6:01 pm Post subject:

Has the rezoning already taken place? According to the Bradbury School website, their zone includes Lamma Island now, plus Disco Bay!
Wow, imagine the culture clashes and fights in the schoolyard between those two groups?

See photos and story on the home page today.

Lamma-Gung · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 6:01 pm Post subject:

Great event, parents!
Here's one of my best shots. Many more and larger versions on the home page today.

Down the deli · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 6:07 pm Post subject:

I just don't get it ...why change the zoning for the Lamma kids? Have we suddenly become part of of Hong Kong Islands Southern district. Our kids have to put in a lot of time commuting anyway and with the new zoning plan that'll add another half an hour to 45 minutes to their travelling time. Lamma doesn't have an ESF school it can call its own so we should be in the Pokufulam catchment, ESPECIALLY since the families have their commuting lives ruled by hourly timetables.

Down the deli · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 6:09 pm Post subject:

Isn't Disco Bay gonna get its own EsF skool?

Mississippi Groover · Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 10:52 pm Post subject:

Here is the first mention of rezoning from the ESF News of 29 September 2006

Ed Banger · over 200 messages posted Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 275

Glad to see this kids education isn't going to waste!

tjungarayi · Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2007 4:17 pm Post subject: Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt

Assuming the kid in the picture is English. Isn't that Winston Churchill's 'peace' sign or an indication to the French on the isle that he still has his fingers to fire his Welsh longbow.

Tavis · Posted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 6:57 am Post subject:

An article from the Education Section of the Sat. SCMP:

Saturday, January 27, 2007
Lamma parents start petition over zoning changes

LIZ GOOCH
Parents living on Lamma Island are upset that their children will have to attend a different English Schools Foundation school than previously planned due to zoning changes.

The parents have been told children who live on Lamma will have to attend Bradbury School when they start Year One in August.

Under the old zoning rules, Lamma pupils were included in the Kennedy School catchment area.

The parents say sending their children to Bradbury School on Stubbs Road will increase their travelling time and separate children from their friends.

They are calling on the ESF to reconsider its decision and have started a petition that has attracted about 280 signatures.

In a letter sent to the ESF this week, the parents of 13 children due to start school later this year wrote that forcing students to attend Bradbury School would divide a close-knit community of children who have grown up together.

"We believe that the proposed change in the ESF catchment area for Lamma Island will have a negative and detrimental effect on this unity," the letter states.

Jane Wilbor, whose five-year-old son will start school in August, said younger children on the island had looked forward to joining their older friends at Kennedy School in Pok Fu Lam. "It's very much that type of community that we feel is going to be absolutely split in half," she said.

Parents are also concerned that attending Bradbury School will increase their children's travelling time.

Lamma students now attending Kennedy School take the 7.20am ferry to Central and return to Lamma on the 3.15pm ferry.

But Ms Wilbor said that according to the current bus timetable, children attending Bradbury would have to take the 7am ferry to Central and return on the 3.50pm ferry, adding nearly an hour of travelling to their day.

"Although this may not seem like much of a change, it is a terribly long day for a four or five-year-old child," the letter says.

Ms Wilbor said her son and other children who live in Pak Kok Tsuen would have to travel to Bradbury via Aberdeen, resulting in an even longer journey.

The parents received a letter notifying them of the change on November 22. It said children who had a sibling at Kennedy School could choose between attending the same school as their sibling or attend Bradbury.

Ms Wilbor said she had been shocked when she received the news as she had already told her son he would be going to the same school as his older neighbours.

The ESF's head of parent and student services, Chris Forse, said applications for Kennedy School had grown as new housing developments in Cyberport and Belcher's were completed.

The decision to rezone Lamma and Discovery Bay from Kennedy to Bradbury was made to even out applications and ensure balanced enrolments at both schools.

Mr Forse said the travelling time from Lamma to Bradbury School via Central was not significantly different to the journey to Kennedy School.

"In the end some families were bound to be affected as we have no option but to reduce the pressure on Kennedy School," he said.

In other changes to zoning, students in the West Kowloon corridor area around Union Square and Tsing Yi Island will attend Island School this year.

These students were previously in the catchment areas for King George V School and Sha Tin College, where pressure for year seven places was acute, Mr Forse said.

He said he regretted that some Lamma residents were unhappy with the decision.

"All our schools carry the ESF quality assurance seal so I am sure the children will be happy at Bradbury and that the Lamma communities will establish the same productive relationship at Bradbury as they did at Kennedy School."

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