TWO Manchester secondary schools were wrong to close on the day of gangster Desmond Noonan's funeral, education chiefs have ruled.
The heads of Chorlton High School and St Thomas Aquinas RC High School in Chorlton decided to close after advice from police. The funeral took place in nearby Southern Cemetery.
The decision angered some parents, was slammed as a "bad decision" by council leader Richard Leese and has been criticised by Noonan's brother Domenyk.
An investigation concluded the closure of the schools was unnecessary and was due to "poor communications". Now the council is to draw up guidelines for such circumstances.
Jeff Smith, executive member for education, said: "We asked the chief executive to investigate and he met the schools and the police.
"Although advice was given to schools with the best of intentions, we are satisfied it was not necessary to close the schools.
Important
"It's a major decision to close a school for a day and we need a full review of how those decisions are made. It should be in only exceptional circumstances."
Domenyk Noonan said: "St Thomas Aquinas was Dessie's old school and he would have been devastated if he knew it had shut for the day. Education is important for kids, especially for those from deprived backgrounds."
The heads say they took the decision to close last Friday after police told them that between 5,000 and 11,000 mourners were expected to converge on the area for the funeral - although the actual number turned out to be closer to 300.
Peter Kennedy, headteacher at Chorlton High School, said:"I am pleased that it has now been acknowledged that police advice was, indeed, given to the schools, who also acted with the best of intentions and were not prepared to put the safety of their students and staff at risk in the light of that advice."
Chief Supt Alan Cooper said: "We contacted four schools and one college within the Chorlton area to advise them of the event.
"The schools sought clarification of the finer details and timings of the procession, which were provided.
"It is possible some of the content of those discussions was misinterpreted."
Should the schools have closed? Have your say.
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i think the decision was absolutely diabolical! the short notice of the closure was not enough time for parents to arrange alternative child care and why should our children be denied loss of a days education.
it was the popes funeral the week before and they did not contemplate closing the school for that!
was the popes funeral in chorlton? what kind of comment is that? the schools have made sure the staff and pupils are safe. what would you have said if the schools had been kept open and something had happened?
Are you therfore suggesting that if the schools had remained open there could possibly have been trouble? What and where was the risk from the schools staying open? Are the people who atended the funeral so hell bent on causing mayhem that they would have turned on children who are hopefully attending school to maybe achieve something and make an honest go of their lives?
I personally think the schools did the right thing to shut . Because for one if your child had have got injured in anyway at all you the parents would have been the first to complain .
The problem, as I understand it, is that the heads were warned with less than an hour to go before the kids went home. To consult, evaluate, reflect, decide, get a letter written, printed and out to hundreds of children scattered around the building in that time is a tall order, especially when it is alleged they couldn't get hold of a BIG SUIT in the educ. offices.
It's a bit ripe for the Councillors to wade in with populist followership- what would they have said if things had gone wrong or if there had been a breakdown of school discipline with kids bolting (though police and staff lines) to gawp? But then I suppose they do have certain political role models.