Brighton parents and teachers continue to protest school admission cuts

Parents from Brighton and Hove primary schools took part in a rally against the council's proposals to cut school admission places.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

More than 100 people turned out to protest against the Brighton and Hove City Council’s plans to reduce the intake of reception students at seven primary schools from 2023.

The council is consulting the public about proposals to reduce school admission numbers, to address the problems in future years caused by the national falling birth rate.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They predict just 1,930 will apply for primary and infant spaces in September 2025 – down 20 per cent from this year.

Teachers and parents feel the cuts would be devastating to the schools and would disproportionally hit poorer families, pupils with special educational needs and the area’s diverse community.Teachers and parents feel the cuts would be devastating to the schools and would disproportionally hit poorer families, pupils with special educational needs and the area’s diverse community.
Teachers and parents feel the cuts would be devastating to the schools and would disproportionally hit poorer families, pupils with special educational needs and the area’s diverse community.

Leila Erin-Jenkins, a parent at Bevendean Primary School and organiser of the rally, said: “We organised the rally to try and get all seven schools involved and it went really well. Despite everything that has been happening with Covid we had more than 100 people turn. All the children got involved in making placards and banners and we had speakers from all the schools. MP Lloyd Russel Moyle was there and he gave a speech too. So it was a really good event.”

The seven primary schools involved in the proposals are – Bevendean, Carden, Coldean, Queen’s Park, Rudyard Kipling, Saltdean and Woodingdean.

Teachers and parents feel the cuts would be devastating to the schools and would disproportionally hit poorer families, pupils with special educational needs and the area’s diverse community.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Parents have also argued the proposals were at odds with council values supporting diversity and cutting carbon emissions.

Parents have also argued the proposals were at odds with council values supporting diversity and cutting carbon emissions.Parents have also argued the proposals were at odds with council values supporting diversity and cutting carbon emissions.
Parents have also argued the proposals were at odds with council values supporting diversity and cutting carbon emissions.

Those opposed to the proposals believe the solution is to bring together the heads at the city’s schools so that between them they can come up with a less drastic solution.

After the rally, three of the protestors went home and took part in the virtual council public engagement meeting – where they each presented a petition against the proposed admission cuts.

Leila presented the petition for Bevingdean Primary School – which had more than 1,600 signatures – While Laura Bissonnet and Gemma Chumnansin handed over their appeals for Carden and Woodingdean respectively.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Originally, a decision about school admission numbers was due to be taken at a meeting of the councils’ Children, Young People and Skills Committee on January 10 – where they would receive a report on the feedback from the public consultation, currently underway on the council website.

The council is consulting the public about proposals to reduce school admission numbers, to address the problems in future years caused by the national falling birth rate.The council is consulting the public about proposals to reduce school admission numbers, to address the problems in future years caused by the national falling birth rate.
The council is consulting the public about proposals to reduce school admission numbers, to address the problems in future years caused by the national falling birth rate.

However, following the public engagement meeting, the chair of Children, Young People & Skills Committee – Councillor Hannah Clare – said the decision would be going to a later meeting and it wouldn’t be decided on January 10.

Leila Erin-Jenkins said: “We are really pleased with the outcome of the meeting. It give us more time to organise and to get people to add their name to the petition, to fill in the consultation online and to let the public know what’s happening and drum up more support.

Cllr Clare said at the meeting: “This is an important issue and I urge you to fill in these consultations if you haven’t already. This is the best way we can ensure that the potential impact of these proposals are thoroughly investigated by councillors in the depth they deserve to be.”

The consultation closes on January 2.

READ MORE: