A fifth of councils struggling on school places

LGA press release - 15 July 2009

The recession is being blamed for an increased pressure on school places in the last six months by almost one in five councils, new figures released by the Local Government Association have shown, and a further 13% of councils expect the economic downturn to lead to higher demand in the future.  

The figures come from a survey of council leaders and chief executives across England, which also showed more than 15% of councils have seen an increase in requests for free school meals. Nearly a quarter of those who responded expect that statistic to rise in the future. 

The number of school places needed within a local area is predicted from year to year using population forecasts and census information. But the estimates can become less reliable because of unpredictable events such as the recession, and some large cities, including London, are facing a shortage of places in reception classes in September.  

Possible causes include a reduction in the number of parents paying for private education, and families who would normally move out of major cities when their children reach school age being unable to sell their homes because of the standstill in the housing market. 

Cllr Les Lawrence, Chairman of the LGA’s Children and Young People’s board, said: 

"Predicting how many school places will be needed from year to year is a complex issue. Councils do their best to produce accurate calculations on how many children will be starting in their schools, but it is not an exact science and will vary from area to area.  

“Town halls have a responsibility to use taxpayers’ money as carefully as possible and in previous years have been urged to minimise waste by cutting down on the number of excess school places. Half empty classrooms are a strain on council budgets at a time when every penny counts so leaving space in the system is not a solution.  

“Councils which are being affected by shortages for next September will be aware of the problem and will be reviewing their data for the coming years. In the short-term councils will be working with schools to help them find extra capacity and draft in extra teachers and support staff, but there also needs to be an emphasis on improving methods of forecasting for the future.  

“Parents and children can be reassured that the most important thing for everyone involved is that pupils are able to start school in September, at a place where they will be happy and where they will have everything they need to enjoy school life.”

Author: LGA Media Office
Contact: LGA Media Office, Tel: 020 7664 3333

ENDS

 Notes to editors

The survey was sent to leaders and chief executives of all local authorities in England on June 5th 2009 and by June 26th, 202 responses had been received: 107 from chief executives (30% of authorities), 55 from leaders (16% of authorities), and 40 from chief executives / leaders jointly (11% of authorities). Overall, a response was received from 178 authorities (50%).

Service demands – requests for school places

Over the past six months, has your authority experienced, or do you anticipate, additional demands on its services as a result of the economic downturn?

 Number of councils
 percentage
 
Experienced over past 6 months
 28
 19.7%
 
Anticipated
 18
 12.7%
 
Neither experienced nor anticipated
 43
 30.3%
 
Don’t know
 53
 37.3%
 
Total
 142
 100.0%
 

Service demands – requests for free school meals

Over the past six months, has your authority experienced, or do you anticipate, additional demands on its services as a result of the economic downturn?

  
 Number of councils
 percentage
 
Experienced over past 6 months
 22
 15.5%
 
Anticipated
 35
 24.6%
 
Neither experienced nor anticipated
 23
 16.2%
 
Don’t know
 62
 43.7%
 
Total
 142
 100.0%