Plans considered to reduce capacity at primary schools to protect budgets

A Welsh council’s Executive Board is considering plans to reduce pupil admission numbers across three primary schools by 420 to ease financial pressure on headteachers.

Wrexham’s lead member for Education Cllr Phil Wynn says falling pupil numbers at Acton Park Primary School in Acton, Barkers Lane Primary School in Borras and Wat’s Dyke Primary Schools in Garden Village have put pressure on school budgets.

Irregular class sizes mean schools have to employ additional staff to ensure they do not exceed statutory class sizes. But for year groups that go over by a small number, the money received per-pupil does not cover the additional cost.

Birth rate

According to Cllr Wynn, data showing the birth rate in Wrexham continuing to fall over the next five years means the authority must reduce admissions at these three schools to protect their budgets.

Acton Park currently has 390 pupils, but capacity for 420. At Wat’s Dyke there are 261 pupils, with room for 315.

At Barkers Lane, which had a £1.65m extension in 2021 funded by Welsh Government – there are currently 210 pupils with room for 315.

Reducing capacity will not mean school premises reduce in size. It will simply mean fewer pupils places are available in reception.

There will also be some mixed classes between year five and six.

If approved, statutory notices will be posted for all three schools advising that their published admission number (PAN) will reduce to 210.

“School governors approached us asking for numbers to be reduced,” said Cllr Wynn. “In the current economic climate they were finding it difficult to fund odd numbers of pupil intakes.

“Intakes of 15, 30, 45 are ideal because that enables schools to properly fund the teaching staff required. But when you get 34 or 35 for example that can be an issue.

“There is a legal obligation that schools can’t have class sizes larger than 30, but if 35 pupils apply and the PAN allows that number then they are in and schools need to fund the appropriate staff.

“That is causing financial concerns for certain schools at the moment because there has been a significant drop-off in the birth rate in Wrexham and we envisage that surplus places will continue to grow.

“Having gone through the statutory consultation process – which admittedly didn’t receive a lot of engagement – the responses we did get mean we are comfortable proposing these statutory notices to reduce the PAN for these three schools.”

‘Ill-timed’

Cllr Wynn admitted that the Barker’s Lane extension project seemed ill-timed, but added that the data at the time did not indicate the birth rate was about to fall.

“At the time there was an expectation that the pressures on city centre schools was there but it shows how quickly the world and the data can change.

“After Covid the birth rate fell away rapidly. The timing of that investment wasn’t ideal.

“But there is capacity still there in all three schools. If the world changes again and birth rates rise school governing bodies can review the PAN once more and we can consider allowing more pupils into those schools.”

Addressing mixed classes of Year five and six pupils, Cllr Wynn said it ws an added pressure for teachers, but said elsewhere in the authority it was a system that was working.

“Many of our schools have three classes where there are two classes of 30 from a single year and one in the middle that is mixed with kids from Year five and six.

“It does create challenges for teachers but that is standard procedure throughout the UK. We’ve engaged with the heads and they have assured us they believe this is the right decision for their schools.”

Wrexham Council’s Executive Board will consider the proposals on Tuesday, April 8.