Issue - meetings

This report provides Cabinet with a refresh of the School Place Planning Strategy 2019-2023 approved by Cabinet in November 2018.

Cabinet RESOLVED:

(1)      To approve the refresh of the School Place Planning Strategy 2019-2023 as detailed within Appendix 1 of the report.

(2)      To note that Planning Areas had been reviewed to align with the new ward boundaries and that Planning Area 5 had been divided into two Planning Areas to support analysis of school places in the south of the borough.

(3)      To note current forecasts for primary and secondary places indicated a fall in demand in the short term, with larger impacts on some planning areas than others.

(4)      To note there remained significant and increasing demand for places that meet the needs of children and young people with SEND aged 0-25, and the planned strategies for addressing this need (including the SEN Capital Programme of £44.19m approved by Cabinet in January 2022).

(5)      To note the reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Early Years provision and the strategies to support recovery in the sector.

Councillor Grahl (Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Schools) introduced a report providing Cabinet with the outcome of the annual refresh of the School Place Planning Strategy 2019-2023.

In considering the report, members noted that the annual refresh of the Strategy provided an updated assessment of school place demand across the borough based on the latest pupil projections from the Greater London Authority (GLA) and therefore took into account changes in key factors such as the impact of birth rate, new housing or migration patterns along with the impact of Brexit and the pandemic on the local population and resulting effect on forecast demand for school places.

In noting the trends forecast in relation to primary, secondary, early years and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities school place provision, Cabinet recognised the work being undertaken to develop strategies working with schools to manage changing patterns of demand and to ensure the sustainability of provision, along with the potentially challenging nature of decisions that may be required over the longer term in this respect, for which planning was already underway.

Members were supportive of the overall approach adopted as part of the refresh of the strategy alongside the work being undertaken with Brent schools to address the longer-term challenges identified as a result of the forecast population trends in relation to school place planning.

Having considered the update provided, Cabinet RESOLVED:

(1)      To approve the refresh of the School Place Planning Strategy 2019-2023 as detailed within Appendix 1 of the report.

(2)      To note that Planning Areas had been reviewed to align with the new ward boundaries and that Planning Area 5 had been divided into two Planning Areas to support analysis of school places in the south of the borough.

(3)      To note current forecasts for primary and secondary places indicated a fall in demand in the short term, with larger impacts on some planning areas than others.

(4)      To note there remained significant and increasing demand for places that meet the needs of children and young people with SEND aged 0-25, and the planned strategies for addressing this need (including the SEN Capital Programme of £44.19m approved by Cabinet in January 2022).

(5)      To note the reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Early Years provision and the strategies to support recovery in the sector.