AE -v- Hertfordshire County Council (anonymity order)
Claim number: AC-2024-LON-001701
In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division
Administrative Court
21 May 2024
Before:
The Honourable Mrs Justice Lang DBE
Between:
AE (a child by her mother and litigation friend SE)
-v-
Hertfordshire County Council
and
Diocese of St Albans
The Governing Body of Tonwell St Mary’s School
(Interested parties)
Order
On the Claimant’s application for an anonymity order, urgent consideration and interim relief;
Following consideration of the documents lodged by the Claimant;
Order by the Honourable Mrs Justice Lang DBE
1. Pursuant to CPR r.39.2, in any report of these proceedings, there shall be no publication of the name and address of the Claimant and her litigation friend, nor any other particulars likely to lead to their identification. In the proceedings, the Claimant shall be anonymised and referred to as “AE” and the litigation friend shall be anonymised and referred to as “SE”.
2. No later than 7 days after service of this order, the Claimant’s solicitors shall file with the Court copies of case documents which have been anonymised and/or redacted to protect the identity of the Claimant and her litigation friend, in accordance with paragraph 1 above.
3. Non-parties may not obtain any documents from the court file which have not been anonymised and/or redacted to protect the identity of the Claimant and her litigation friend, in accordance with paragraph 1 above.
4. The claim is to be expedited.
5. The applications for permission and for interim relief shall be listed for hearing on the first available date after 17 June 2024, having regard to the availability of counsel. Time estimate: 2½ hours.
6. By 30 May 2024, the Defendant shall file and serve an Acknowledgment of Service, and Summary Grounds of Resistance, and any evidence on which it wishes to rely.
7. By 30 May 2024, the Defendant shall file and serve an indexed paginated bundle of relevant documents in its possession, to be disclosed pursuant to the duty of candour. An electronic version of the bundle shall be prepared and lodged by the Defendant in accordance with the Guidance on the Administrative Court website. A hard copy version of the bundle shall also be prepared and lodged at the Administrative Court Office.
8. The Claimant’s permission bundle is to stand as the hearing bundle.
9. The Claimant must file and serve a Skeleton Argument no less than 10 clear days before the hearing, together with copies of any authorities relied upon.
10. The Defendant, and any Interested Party who wishes to participate in the proceedings, must file and serve a Skeleton Argument no less than 5 clear days before the hearing, together with copies of any authorities relied upon.
11. Liberty to apply to vary or discharge this order on 2 days notice to the other party.
12. Costs reserved.
Reasons
1. The Claimant seeks to challenge the Defendant’s decision, made on 18 March 2024, to close the Claimant’s rural primary school, Tonwell St Mary’s Church of England School, with effect from 31 August 2024. It is alleged that the Defendant failed to give conscientious consideration to three alternatives to closure, contrary to section 15(4)(d) Education and Inspectors Act 2006 and the associated Statutory Guidance.
2. I accept that the matter is urgent, as staff contracts will be terminated, and the site disposed of, in the near future. The Claimant seeks interim relief preventing the Defendant from taking further steps to progress the closure of the school until the determination of the claim.
3. However, the Defendant must be given sufficient time in which to prepare a full response and to make disclosure of relevant documents, so that the issues can be fairly and properly considered by the Court. Sufficient time must be given for the exchange of skeleton arguments and the preparation of bundles.
4. I have granted an anonymity order because the Claimant is a child and her litigation friend is her mother.