The amount of pupils continuing to enter primary schools throughout London is decreasing. It’s many boroughs in the capital that are experiencing its effects most acutely. So far, Inner London has taken the brunt of it. Neighborhoods such as Lambeth, Westminster, Southwark and Hackney have lost thousands of students from their rolls in recent years.
In Lambeth by itself, the community education system has experienced the loss of 2,563 primary school travelers. In second place, and following apace, is Westminster with a drop of 2,231 pupils. Meanwhile Southwark has seen a jaw-dropping drop of 3,420 pupils. These numbers are a sign of a wider trend of shrinking enrollment figures from home—changes that have raised widespread alarms among educators and policymakers alike.
Some of the reasons behind this continuing decline in pupils are myriad. With declining birth rates and gentrification on the rise, families are forced to look outside of traditional schooling in greater numbers. At the same time, post-Brexit realities and London’s steeply increasing cost of living are prompting many others to move well beyond the capital’s borders. Given that some boroughs have already started to lose students, their current funding levels are not sustainable. As recently as October 2024, Hackney had 23% of its reception places empty.
Such sudden change in pupil numbers has put schools in a fiscal peril. Jon Andrews, head of analysis at the Education Policy Institute, noted the challenges faced by schools:
“It costs just as much to put a teacher in front of a class of 25 pupils as it does in front of a class of 30, so schools might struggle to find the efficiencies in the way we would expect.”
So now the council in Hackney is working to reverse that sharp decrease in pupil numbers. To this end, they plan to close down six primary schools. The planned closure of St. Dominic’s Catholic Primary School, in Homerton, East London, has sparked strike action from teachers and action by parents. Their response speaks to the anxiety and outrage this decision has caused.
Carly Slingsby, a teacher and member of the National Education Union, expressed her worries about the future of schools in London:
“If they don’t change that, we are going to see loved schools all across London closing down in the same way that we are, and that is heart-breaking.”
The fallout from declining enrollment goes much farther than just school closures. Schools with decreasing enrollment will have a tougher time holding onto their funding and their ability to operate. Slingsby emphasized that many districts are already $4 billion in debt fiscally. This debt has led them to be placed on closure lists.
This is what makes Havering so different from most of the other boroughs. This is a massive increase of 2,028 on the number of school places needed for 18/19 and 23/24. Meanwhile, some regions are facing steep drops. Some of our communities are experiencing growth and development, sometimes in ways that need a new education workforce.
In response to the crisis facing primary schools, a spokesperson for the Department for Education reaffirmed the government’s commitment to educational funding:
“We are putting education back at the forefront of national life.”
The government has also announced £3.2 billion very welcome new money for school budgets. Of that sum, £1 billion is explicitly earmarked for children and young people with high needs. This funding aims to stabilize schools amidst fluctuating enrollment numbers.
Even with these contributions, local councils still find themselves on the frontline in the fight over the sustainability of both local and national education services. A spokesperson from Hackney Council stated that the council is addressing “the ongoing significant fall in pupil numbers across Hackney and the majority of London boroughs” while trying to navigate budgetary constraints.
Catherine Faulks, lead member for family and children’s services at Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, emphasized the importance of ensuring that any changes to school structures are “secured as swiftly and smoothly as possible” to minimize disruption for families and communities.
