Uckfield primary school Holy Cross could be closed due to rapidly falling pupil numbers

On Monday (May 22), Cllr Bob Standley, East Sussex County Council’s lead member for education, is set to decide whether to begin the formal process of closing Holy Cross Church of England Primary School in Belmont Road.

According to council papers, the school is no longer considered to be viable by the council or the Diocese of Chichester, as pupil numbers have fallen significantly in recent years.

The school is supposed to have space for up to 210 pupils, but currently only has 27 children on its roll. As a result, the school had to reorganise into just two classes — one for Reception to Year Two and another for Years Three to Six.

The council says this reorganisation — combined with a high level of staff turnover — has had an impact on the quality and consistency of education at the school.

In a report to be considered by Cllr Standley, a council officer said: “The local authority is committed to ensuring all children in East Sussex are able to receive an excellent standard of education. Regrettably, the local authority and the diocese no longer believe that the education on offer at the school meets this standard.

“Given the urgency of the situation in terms of the rapidly decreasing number of children, the challenge of securing appropriate leadership and teaching staff for the school and the concerns over the quality of education that children are receiving, the local authority and the diocese believe that closure of the school at the earliest opportunity is in the best interests of the children and the school community.

“The local authority believes there would be sufficient places available in the local area for children at the school were it to close.”

The council says it and the diocese have been working with the school to find alternatives to closure for some time (including both federation and academisation), but its small number of pupils mean these other routes are not viable.

If given the go ahead by Cllr Standley, the council would begin a formal consultation on the school’s closure, with a final decision set to be made before the start of the next academic year.

The prospect of a closure has already been on the horizon for some time, with the school’s Interim Executive Board (IEB) writing to parents about the plans back in March.

In a letter sent to parents at the time, IEB chairman Simon Chandler said: “We recognise that this news will be very upsetting for you and that you will be anxious about what it means for your child(ren).

“I want to assure you our decision has been taken in the best interests of the children; at the centre of everything we do is a commitment that we all share to provide and excellent standard of education for all children.

“Sadly, we no longer believe that is possible at Holy Cross.”

Would you be affected? Send your thoughts to [email protected]