CYP Now - Look outside the 20th century for answers to the school places crisis

I have no idea why large secondary schools are considered controversial. Last month, they were all over the press, with headlines warning of a "growing crisis" over a shortage of secondary school places that could lead to the creation of so-called "titan" schools.

I'm confused because, first of all, it can't come as much of a surprise to anyone that the increasing numbers of children in our primary schools will soon need a secondary school place. The birth rate has been on the rise since 2002 and this, together with record levels of inward migration, has meant a surge in pupil numbers in large parts of the country.

In Milton Keynes, we now have 14 per cent more children in our school system than we had just five years ago. It's a similar picture in many towns and cities and a particular challenge in London, where boroughs such as Barking & Dagenham and Newham are dealing with huge rises in the number of children needing a school place.

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