The current Published Admission Number (PAN) at St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School is 60. This means that the number of children admitted to the school in reception each year is a maximum of 60.

When planning primary school places in Aireborough, the District is split into 3 planning areas – Guiseley, Yeadon and Rawdon.
In recent years across this District, there has been a significant reduction in the number of younger children registered with the NHS. This has led to a high level of surplus places in primary school planning areas, including Guiseley.

According to data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the number of live births nationally has fallen in five of the last six years, with the total number of live births in 2022 being the fewest since 2002. Given the falling number of births nationally and across the District, there has been a significant reduction in the number of Reception places required across this planning area; the Council does not anticipate that there will be a significant increase in the number of places required in the near future.

The number of Reception pupils at St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School has not reached 60 pupils for any of the cohorts in the past 4 years. On average over this span, there have been approximately 10-15 surplus Reception places each year.

This pattern has also been seen in other local schools, and at the start of this year there were surplus places in all Guiseley and Yeadon schools.

Across the Guiseley, Yeadon and Rawdon planning area, there were 435 places available to start Reception in 2023. However, the total number of places allocated on National Offer Day was only 361. This has since fallen slightly to 351 on roll in September 2023 and is considerably below the number of available places.

Current forecasts indicate that Reception numbers in the coming years will decrease further across Guiseley, Yeadon and Rawdon, to 336 in 2024 and 318 in 2025. On National Offer Day, 51 children were allocated to start Reception at the school. 49 were on roll at the school in September.

A large portion of funding received by schools is directly related to the number of pupils attending the school. Too many vacancies mean that schools will not receive the maximum possible revenue. Therefore, the school is proposing to reduce the number of available places to enable the school to operate more efficiently and cost effectively.

The Local Authority’s forecast information has been used to model the school’s budget over the next five years. This process showed that, if the PAN remains at 60, the school is likely to face significant financial difficulty. The proposed PAN reduction will help to ensure the school has a financially stable position.

The School Admissions Code requires that all admission authorities consult where they propose to reduce a PAN.

In accordance with the School Admissions Code, St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School is consulting with key stakeholders, including:

• • Parents/carers of current pupils and prospective parents of pupils
  • Leeds City Council (the Local Authority in which the school is situated)
  • Councillors and MPs
  • Trade Unions
  • Anyone else who has an interest in the proposed change

This consultation will run from 9th November 2023 until 22nd December 2023, after which time any representations received will be considered and a report taken to the Governing Board for a decision to be made on the PAN for St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School.

St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School proposes to reduce the PAN from 60 to 45 from 1st September 2025.

This means that the maximum number of pupils intended to be admitted in Reception in 2025, and all subsequent Reception cohorts, will be 45. For children who already have a place at the school in year groups from Year 3 upwards (current year 1 pupils) we plan for there to be no change, and children will be taught in pure year group classes until they finish primary school.

In September 2025, we anticipate that Nursery/Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 classes may need to merge to form mixed-age classes. From 2025, we intend that children in Year 3 upwards will continue to be taught in pure year groups until they have finished school (i.e. 2 classes per year group). However, all cohorts of children moving forward from 2025 (i.e. the 2025 Nursery, Reception Year 1 and Year 2 cohorts) may be taught in mixed-age classes.

We will move towards a class model very similar to that of some local schools such as Tranmere Park. Many schools teach children in mixed-age classes and we believe this does not diminish the quality of education.

There are many benefits that can come about for primary aged children in mixed-age classes, for example some year 2 pupils in a mixed Year 1/2 class benefiting from a more play-based, free-flow approach to learning more in-line with Year 1 and Reception learning approaches. Another example could be some older pupils within Year 1 benefiting from being alongside Year 2 pupils in a Year 1/2 mixed-age class. In a mixed aged class or otherwise, it is always essential for children to access the correct curriculum and to receive appropriate support and challenge.

The class structure could be as follows in 2025/26:

• • Nursery and Reception children (up to 60) in the current Reception classrooms
  • In the current Year 1 classrooms – 1 class of up to 30 Year 1 pupils, 1 mixed class of up to 30 Year 1 and Reception pupils
  • In the current Year 2 classrooms – 1 class of up to 30 Year 2 pupils, 1 mixed class of up to 30 Year 1 and Year 2 Pupils
  • Year 3 – 2 classes of pure Year 3
  • Year 4 – 2 classes of pure Year 4
  • Year 5 – 2 classes of pure Year 5
  • Year 6 – 2 classes of pure Year 6

We would generally aim to group children in mixed classes by age – e.g. the oldest Year 1 pupils would be in the mixed Year 1/2 class. The youngest Year 1 pupils would generally be in the Reception/Year 1 class.

The Governing Board at St. Oswald’s Church of England Primary School and the Council will look creatively at solutions in the future, should there be an unexpected rise in birth rates and a shortage of school places in the planning area – e.g. a bulge intake.

The Governing Board believe that reducing the PAN at St. Oswald’s will provide stability for the school’s long-term planning and allow it to continue to deliver high quality educational outcomes for the pupils currently on roll. The reduction in PAN will ensure that an appropriate number of places are provided for future pupils, in line with forecasts.

Yours faithfully,
Jonny Davies
Headteacher

Martin Baker
Chair of Governors