Notice is given, in accordance with Section 15 (1) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 (as amended by the Education Act 2011) and the School Organisation (Establishment and Discontinuance of Schools) Regulations 2013, that the Royal Borough of Greenwich intends to close Gallions Mount Primary School with effect from 31st August 2025.

We have considered the responses to the recent informal consultation on the future of the school which ended on 20 December 2024. As it did not provide any viable options to support the school remaining open, we are publishing this statutory proposal for closure..

Should the decision to close Gallions Mount Primary School be taken, all children attending the school would be supported to find places at alternative schools in line with parental preferences and/or availability of places within the area starting in September 2025.

Within four weeks from the date of publication of this notice, any person may object to or make comments on the proposal by either:

a) Emailing objections, comments, or questions to: school-place-planning@royalgreenwich.gov.uk

or

b) Writing to:

Admissions, Place Planning & Capital Projects Service

Royal Greenwich Children’s Services,

First Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London SE18 6HQ.

Responses must be received by 5pm on Friday 7th February 2025 when this statutory notice and the representation period will expire. In line with the requirements of Schedule 2, Paragraph 18 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 (as amended by the Education Act 2011), a decision must be taken by the decision maker no later than two months following the expiry of the representation period. Therefore, the Council’s Cabinet must make a decision on this proposal by 7th April 2025 (subject to a 5-day call in period¹), otherwise, it must refer the decision to the Schools Adjudicator.

Details of the proposal is below and published on our website. A copy can also be requested by emailing school-place-planning@royalgreenwich.gov.uk.

¹ The Royal Borough of Greenwich will need to take the decision on whether or not to close Gallions Mount Primary School within two months of the end of the representation period. If the Council fails to take the decision within this time, it will pass all relevant material to the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA), which will itself take the decision.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich hereby publishes this statutory proposal under Section 15(2) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to close Gallions Mount Primary School with effect from 31st August 2025.

CONTACT DETAILS:

1. The Proposer

The Royal Borough of Greenwich

The Woolwich Centre,

35 Wellington Street, Woolwich, London SE18 6HQ

Website: www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk

2. The School

Gallions Mount Primary School

Purrett Road,

Plumstead,

London, SE18 1JR

Telephone: 020 8854 2691

Email: info@gallionsmount.greenwich.sch.uk

3. School category:

Gallions Mount Primary School is a community school maintained by the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

IMPLEMENTATION:

The planned implementation date for the closure of Gallions Mount Primary School is 31st August 2025.

REASON FOR CLOSURE:

The main factors leading to the closure proposal are low and falling pupil numbers impacting on the school’s financial viability and consequent ability to sustain a high-quality education for pupils.

Pupil numbers at Gallions Mount Primary School have consistently declined over recent years. As school budgets are based on the number of pupils a school has on its roll, there has been a growing financial pressure on the school’s finances, which is expected to worsen if Gallions Mount Primary School were to remain open. By the end of the 2024/2025 academic year, the school is projected to have a deficit of £527k, rising to £1.2M by the end of the 2025/2026 academic year. This represents 30% and 75% of the school’s budget respectively.

The Local Authority has been working closely with the school's governing body to explore potential solutions. However, due to the continuing drop in pupil numbers, no short- or medium-term plans to recover the deficit are considered achievable.

Additionally, low pupil numbers also impact children’s school experience, as there are fewer opportunities to socialise and less staff to provide quality curriculum, which the students deserve. Keeping the school open is therefore likely to be detrimental to the education of the pupils on roll and extend the period of uncertainty around the future of the school. As a result, closing the school is the best option to avoid any further detriment to the children’s education.

PUPIL NUMBERS AND ADMISSIONS

Despite extensive efforts by the school to attract more families, Gallions Mount Primary School has not seen any improvement in the number of families applying to the school. From October 2021 to October 2024, the total number of pupils enrolled at the school decreased by nearly a quarter, dropping from 295 to 174 (see Figure 1 below). By December 2024, live data from our attendance monitoring system shows that the number of pupils currently enrolled at the school has fallen further to 157 pupils, excluding nursery-aged pupils. This continuous decline in pupil numbers has resulted in a significant loss of essential funding year after year. With a per pupil funding rate of £7,690 in 2024/25, the school’s lost revenue this academic year is estimated at £407,570.

With the current enrolment number being well below the expected number for a one-form entry primary school, which has a capacity for 210 pupils from Reception to Year 6, the school is not considered financially viable to continue to operate.

Figure 1 below shows the number of pupils enrolled at the school’s nursery and Reception Year in January and October 2024, while Figure 2 shows the number of pupils enrolled in each year group as of the October 2024 census.

Figure 1: Gallions Mount Pupil Numbers in January and October 2024

FTE = full time equivalent i.e. part time nursery pupils reflect 0.5

Figure 2: Gallions Mount Current Pupil Numbers by Year Group – as of October 2024 school census

Figure 3 below shows the gender split and the number of children with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan enrolled at the school as at October 2024 school census. The consultation process on alternative schools for children with EHC Plan has commenced in line with the statutory SEND process to ensure that these children are not impacted by the proposal to close the school, should it be implemented.

Figure 3: Gender and SEN characteristics of pupils on roll by Year Group as of October and January 2024 school census:

DISPLACED PUPILS, IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY, BALANCE OF DENOMINATIONAL PROVISION AND TRAVEL

As at the October 2024 census, there were 174 pupils on roll in Reception to Year 6. Since the start of the Stage 1 informal consultation process on the proposed closure in November 2024, some families have made in-year applications to transfer their children to other schools. As of December 2024, live data from our attendance monitoring system shows that 157 children in Reception to Year 6 remained enrolled at the school. As the closure of the school will not affect the children in Year 6 as they will be transferring to secondary in September 2024, at most, 132 pupils are expected to be affected by a decision to close the school in August 2025.

Figure 4 below shows the number of places available in Royal Greenwich schools within a two-mile walking distance to Gallions Mount Primary School as of 18 December 2024. While these numbers are due to vary based on pupil movements during the year, there are 798 spare places in Reception to Year 5 in schools within a reasonable distance to Gallions Mount Primary School. This is evidence that there are enough spare capacity in local schools to accommodate children likely to be displaced if the decision to close Gallions Mount Primary School is implemented.

Figure 4: Vacancies in Royal Greenwich Schools within a two-mile walking distance to Gallions Mount Primary School as of December 2024

The evidence in Figures 4 shows that given the availability of spare places in local schools, the impact on the community of the closure of Gallions Mount Primary School will be limited.

Having considered parents' request to keep the current Year 5 pupils together through the rest of their primary education, an in-principle agreement has been reached between the Council and South Rise Primary School. If Gallions Mount closes, a new class will be opened at South Rise, allowing Year 5 pupils to transfer together and complete their primary education with their classmates.

Working collaboratively with other schools in the borough, measures are being taken to facilitate redeployment (where possible and appropriate) of staff likely to be displaced by the closure to other Royal Greenwich schools where there are staff vacancies. Where redeployment is not possible, appropriate individual support will be offered to limit the impact of the closure on affected staff.

In addition, the Trades Unions and relevant professional associations will be consulted with regular liaison maintained with them throughout the closure process, if closure is agreed.