Proposed school changes 2024

Proposed changes to Hackney primary schools

On 30 September 2024 Hackney Council decided to consult on changes that would affect up to six primary schools on 31 August 2025. Read the Cabinet report that informed the decision.

Those interested can share their views by taking part in the consultation until 19 November.

This is because the significant fall in pupil numbers has caused the financial position of some of the borough’s schools to worsen to the point that it is no longer possible for the Council to maintain them. 

In recent years the majority of London boroughs, including Hackney, have been experiencing a significant fall in pupil numbers. The reasons behind this are thought to include lower birth rates, the cap on housing benefits, and families leaving London (as a result of the housing crisis, the cost of living, Brexit, and the pandemic). 

Schools receive money from central government based on the number of pupils. This means that schools with a high number of unfilled places have less money for staff, resources, equipment, extracurricular activities, to pay bills and to carry out maintenance work. 

While our schools are recognised for their high performance and excellent results, they face significant challenges due to the reduced government funding caused by the falling rolls. Many schools have already told us that this is affecting their ability to fully support their pupils, especially those with the greatest needs.

We know that our schools have close ties to the local area and communities, sometimes over many generations. This makes these proposals very difficult, and not something we would choose if we felt there was a better option. 

The proposals are:

• The closure of St Mary’s Church of England Primary School.
• The closure of St Dominic’s Catholic Primary School.
• Two options of organisational changes for Sir Thomas Abney Primary School:
  1. A merger with nearby Holmleigh Primary School. In this case, Sir Thomas Abney Primary School would close and its pupils would be offered a place at Holmleigh Primary School. Holmleigh would expand from one to two classes per year group and would relocate to the current site of Sir Thomas Abney School, as this site can fit all the children from both schools. 
  or
  2. Closure of Sir Thomas Abney Primary School.
• Two options of organisational changes for Oldhill Community School:
  1. A merger with nearby Harrington Hill Primary School. In this case, Oldhill Primary School would close and its pupils would be offered a place at Harrington Hill Primary School. Harrington Hill would expand from one to two classes per year group and would operate on the current site of Harrington Hill Primary School.
  or
  2. Closure of Oldhill Community School.
  There is a children’s centre on the same site as Oldhill Community School. Should Oldhill Community School close, the children's centre would continue to operate on the same site, under the management of Harrington Hill, another school or the Council.

If agreed, the proposed changes would take effect on 31 August 2025.

What is a merger?

A merger (also known as ‘amalgamation’) brings together two or more schools to form one school - on one site and under a single leadership. 

Merging schools that have seen a large fall in pupil numbers can bring significant benefits, including:

• Establishing a stronger, more durable single school, that is better equipped to respond to the needs of children and staff and to continue to improve
• More specialist expertise from a wider teaching team
• Stronger finances
• More resources to provide extended services to local families, such as breakfast and afterschool clubs

Why are these proposals needed?

Snapshot - Hackney 2024

• 54 local primary schools
• 2,400 fewer primary school children in January 2024 compared to January 2017
• 2,000 further projected decrease in the number of pupils by the early 2030s
• 2,780 reception places in Hackney in 2023/2024
• 577 (21%) vacant reception places in May 2024 
• 4,808 (23%) vacant places across all year groups in May 2024
• Over £28.5m less funding received by local primary schools compared to what they would be entitled to if their classrooms were full
• 64% of maintained, mainstream primary schools, or the federations they form part of, ended the 2023/24 financial year having overspent. The combined overspend totals more than £4.3m.
• 64% decrease in the last two years in the combined reserve funds held across all maintained, mainstream primary schools, or the federations they form part of (from £9.1m in April 2022 to £3.2m in April 2024).
• 5-10%: a healthy amount of unfilled school places (compared to Hackney’s 21%)

The evolution of unfilled reception places in Hackney

In the last school year, following the statutory process laid down by the Department of Education, Hackney Council made the difficult decision to close four primary schools due to the decrease in the number of pupils. The four schools closed permanently on 31 August 2024.

These closures, together with reductions to the planned admission numbers to other schools across the borough, are expected to reduce the percentage of empty school places to 18% by 2025/2026. This is still far above the healthy surplus of 5-10%. 

School leaders, the Council and its partners have been doing everything they can to manage the situation, including reducing the admission number to a half form of entry, combining age groups, undertaking staff restructures and trying to supplement the schools’ budgets. But this hasn’t solved the problem as rolls and funding continue to fall.

Like many other local authorities, Hackney Council is facing enormous financial challenges, and needs to make substantial savings to be able to continue to protect the borough’s most vulnerable residents. The Council cannot afford to financially support schools that are not sustainable, and must continue to make difficult decisions to make sure our schools are fit for the future, and to protect the high quality education that Hackney is known for. 

What will happen next?

The Council’s Cabinet met on 30 September and decided to consult on these proposals. The consultation is open between 8 October and 19 November to gather views on the proposals. No final decision will be made until April 2025. 

We will work together with school leaders, and the Dioceses in the case of faith schools, to support children, families, staff and communities through the next steps. We will do all we can to protect the education and wellbeing of all those affected.

Proposed timeline

More details about the proposals can be found in the Cabinet report, published on 20 September on the Hackney Council website. 

Consultation documents have been shared with those directly impacted by the proposals. The Council and the school leaders will organise meetings with parents and carers as part of the consultation process. 

All families have been informed directly about the proposals via information packs sent to the schools in scope.

• St Mary's Primary School Information Pack
• St Dominic's Catholic Primary School Information Pack
• Sir Thomas Abney Primary School Information Pack
• Holmleigh Primary School Information Pack
• Oldhill Community School Information Pack
• Harrington Hill Primary School Information Pack

Those interested can share their views by taking part in the consultation until 19 November.