Consultation on the future of Ridgmont Lower School

Consultation closed: Friday 17 November, 2023
Consultation opened: Tuesday 12 September, 2023

Pupil numbers

Ridgmont Lower School is a small rural community lower school with a capacity for a total of 75 pupils from Reception to Year 4. There is also a nursery at the school. 

The total number of children on roll at the school has reduced from 45 in spring 2019, to 20 in spring 2023 as shown in the table below.

There were zero on-time applications for the reception year in September 2022. One on-time application had been received for reception year in September 2023 but was withdrawn.

In August 2023, it was forecasted that the school would have a total of 17 children on roll in September, with no children in the reception class (excluding pupils in nursery).  As of 11th September 2023, the number of pupils on roll is 4.

If the current pattern of attendance continues, then the number on roll at the school in years Reception to Year 4 is expected to remain low.  

Where pupils travel to school from

Historically, the school has attracted pupils from outside its catchment area with pupils travelling from the following catchments areas; Cranfield Academy, Marston Moretaine, Thomas Johnson Lower, Shelton Lower, Aspley Guise Lower and pupils also travel from outside of Central Bedfordshire.

Population

Although the population in the village of Ridgmont is ageing, the number of school age children is greater than it was in 2011.

The table below shows the population of Ridgmont parish by age group from the 2011 and 2021 Censuses. 56 residents (14%) were aged 65 or over in 2011, increasing to 80 residents (18%) in 2021, so the population is getting older. The proportions of children aged 0-14 were similar in both Censuses (19% in 2011 and 18% in 2021), but there has been a decrease (of 6 children) in the number of children aged 0-4 and an increase (of 11 children) in the number aged 5-9.

Source: Office for National Statistics, 2011 Census and 2021 Census

Impact on teaching

The school has been rated good by Ofsted. In March 2022, the school was subject to a Section 8 Inspection. This is an inspection to confirm that the school remains rated good and that safeguarding is effective. An area that the Ofsted inspection highlighted related to curriculum planning and monitoring. A notable comment was that:

There has been no change to this school’s overall judgement of good as a result of this initial (section 8) inspection. However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a full inspection were carried out now. The next inspection will therefore be a full (section 5) inspection.

In June 2023 the school was inspected again but the report is yet to be published.

Community use of the school site

The school provides a community facility for two Woburn and Wavendon Football Clubs. The clubs use the playing fields on Saturday mornings from late August through to July as their ground for home matches and midweek training, twice a week from late August to October.

Woburn Estate, who hold the freehold, is a key consultee.

Financial impact

Under present funding arrangements, where there are too few children to form at least one class for each key stage this puts pressure on teachers and forthcoming changes to the local funding formula, as a result of national school funding reform, will increase the pressure to operate more efficiently. Therefore, schools at or below the minimum size outlined below must consider options for federating, merging or joining an academy chain.

In terms of overall financial viability decreasing pupil numbers will make it increasingly difficult for the school to afford to recruit staff.

At the end of the 2021/22 financial year, the school had a revenue surplus of £11,919. This reduced to £4,216 at the end of the 2022/23 financial year.

The budget submission for the five years from 2023/24 predicts an increasing cumulative deficit from £50,517 to £445,928 by 2027/28.

Support offered to the school

The Council’s School Improvement Team (SIT) has been monitoring and supporting this situation at the school since 2018.

Over this period, the school has received additional funding to support school improvement and work with SEND Advisory Teachers and School Improvement Advisors (SIA). In addition, the school has commissioned educational professionals on specific projects/activities to help it address the challenges it has faced.

The role of the SIT is to identify areas for improvement and ensure the school receives support to improve the quality of education.

A few examples of the support the school can access from the SIT are: education audits, governance and staff training, support for governing body meetings, safeguarding reviews, and access to a range of bespoke projects.

All schools also have the option of purchasing a subscription to the Councils governance support service. This includes an enhanced range of training for governors across the year.

Rural Primary School Designation and the presumption against closure

It is important to note that the school is designated as a Rural Primary School by the Department for Education (DfE) and there is a presumption against the closure of a rural school, unless consideration is given to:

• the likely effect of the closure of the school on the local community
• the availability, and likely cost to the local authority, of transport to other schools
• any increase in the use of motor vehicles which is likely to result from the closure of the school, and the likely effects of any such increase
• alternatives to closure including federation with another local school; conversion to academy status and joining a multi-academy trust
• the scope for an extended school to provide local community services and facilities e.g. childcare facilities, family and adult learning, healthcare, community internet access etc.
• transport implications i.e. the availability, and likely cost to parents of transport to other schools;
• whether the proposal will result in unreasonably long journey times
• the size of the school and whether it puts the children at an educational disadvantage e.g. in terms of breadth of curriculum or resources available
• the proportion of pupils attending the school from within the local community i.e. whether the school is being used by the local community
• the overall and long-term impact on the local people and community of the closure of the village school and the loss of the building as a community facility
• educational standards at the school and the likely effect on standards at neighbouring schools
• whether the school is now surplus to requirements (e.g. because there are surplus places elsewhere in the local area which can accommodate displaced pupils, and there is no predicted demand for the school in the medium or long term) and
• wider school organisation and the capacity of good schools in the area to accommodate pupils.

Options already considered

The following options have been considered, but have so far been unsuccessful:

• Federation: The school and the Council worked together in 2020 and 2021 to explore the possibility of federating with local lower schools to create a larger, single primary school on one site or two sites. This was unsuccessful. Federation requires both Ridgmont and any other school considered, including their governors, trustees or wider stakeholders to be in agreement around the proposal for federation. The Council has sought to support a federation, however to date this has not been supported and agreed between schools.
• Further discussions were undertaken with a lower school to understand if a federation could be formed between the two schools, but proposals were not taken forward. The school has attempted to identify other schools to work with without success.
• Academisation has been considered with a nearby academy, however, academisation would not address the challenges brought about as a result of low pupil numbers.

The Council’s role

As the school is a Council-maintained lower school, Central Bedfordshire Council is the responsible body in terms of leading any statutory processes. The Department for Education’s (DfE) Statutory guidance expects all decision-makers to adopt a presumption against the closure of rural schools. This does not mean that a rural school will never close, but that the case for closure should be strong and clearly in the best interests of educational provision in the area and the outcomes of children in schools.

General policy principle on school place planning

The Council’s Executive approved policy principles for School Place Planning includes consideration for rural schools. Small rural schools have nationally shown themselves capable of delivering the National Curriculum and providing a high standard of education. However, small schools do present financial and educational challenges which need to be considered.