ALTHOUGH the council no longer runs all our local schools, as many are now academies, we still have a duty to provide enough school places.

This can be quite a challenge, as it is not just a case of looking at birth rates and approving reports at Cabinet meetings. Since Swindon is a growing place, we also have to estimate how many families are moving into which parts of the town.

Even when we find land in the right places to meet growing demand, other events can still overtake us. For instance, the weather has affected our proposed new primary school to serve Priory Vale, above, and St Andrews.

I’m told that Swindon had over 70 days’ continuous rain, which means that the developer can’t complete a vital access road on time because the ground is a quagmire. Nevertheless, the Cabinet is keenly aware that we need to provide places and we are working on a contingency plan that will still allow children to start school this September.

I am grateful for the patience and cooperation of the local ward councillors in working with the Cabinet to resolve this problem. We will debate this matter fully at the next Cabinet meeting on 19 March.

In the town centre, our plans for a new school also hit a problem when the academy that was to run it, St Joseph’s, did poorly in an OFSTED inspection. I am delighted the Roman Catholic Diocese worked with the council to find an alternative provider, which they have done. We have even been lucky enough to secure some money from central government towards the costs.

These two examples illustrate the distinctive challenges Swindon faces because we need new businesses and jobs for our local and national economy, but that brings with it higher demands for services, such as schools. Over the past eight years we have provided more than 670 new reception places at primary school, and this has included three completely new primary schools.

While we get some money from developers towards these costs, these payments can never pay for an entire school. This money often comes when families have moved into their new houses, when it is too late to start building a school – it has to be there already.

That is why since 2003, one of this administration’s key policies has been and remains investing in education, investing in our young people. Some people will see this as merely piling up the council’s debt. I would reject such claims, as we are spending money so that our young people have a good quality education and are best placed to enter the work force.