A group of parents from East Finchley were frustrated with the lack of good community secondary schools in their area and decided to unite and demand for a change. The group, Local Schools for Local Children, expanded, and has now more than 1,000 supportive local parents, who are campaigning for a new Free School – The Archer Academy.
The Local Schools for Local Children group has been working with Barnet Council in order to tackle this problem and construct the new school.
Our Role
As part of the application process, the group requested Mapping for Change to provide a map which displays Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) data and the home postcode of students, separated by grade level. This allowed Local Schools For Local Children to form a much clearer picture about the level of deprivation of the children they are campaigning for.
We created the map o Geocommons using Geographical Information System (GIS) analysis of the socioeconomic background of school children.
Impact
Local Schools for Local Children group used the map with GIS analysis to provide evidence of the lack of co-educational, non-denominational and non-selective secondary schools in their area to support its application for the Archer Academy school.
The application was submitted to the Department of Education on 24th February 2012.
In July 2012, their application was successful! The Archer Academy opened its doors to students in September 2013.
Related Projects
Science in the City
Science in the City is a project that is being carried out with residents in the Barbican and Mansell Street, in the City of London. Residents are using low-tech tools to measure Nitrogen Dioxide and particulates.
Citizen Science Used to Map Community Air Quality
In 2009, Mapping for Change supported communities across London to measure and map local air quality. Use of a ‘citizen science’ approach meant local residents in seven locations were able to collect data, then see the real results of their monitoring activities, and subsequently embark on a campaign to see the serious results addressed.