At a meeting of Haringey Council's Cabinet Member Signing, Councillor Zena Brabazon, Cabinet Member for Children, Schools & Families, made the decision to close St Peter in Chains RC Infant School and St Gildas' Junior School from 31 August 2025. This decision was made after reviewing the results of the statutory representation period, during which only one objection was received. The closure is due to the schools' financial deficits and low pupil numbers.

Closure of St Peter in Chains RC Infant School and St Gildas' Junior School

Councillor Zena Brabazon agreed that the local authority will cease maintaining St Peter in Chains RC Infant School and St Gildas' Junior School from 31 August 2025. This will allow transition planning to commence for the remaining pupils, so they can be supported in securing another local school rated 'Good' or 'Outstanding' by Ofsted.

The decision was made for the following reasons:

• The federated schools are in deficit.
• The revenue budget to operate successfully in the future, whilst maintaining the delivery of a good quality of education for pupils, has been severely diminished by very low pupil numbers.
• Many families have already transferred their children to other local schools. As of the week ending 30 May 2025, St Peter in Chains and St Gildas' Catholic Infant and Junior Schools had 27 pupils on roll, 17 of whom were Year 6 pupils who would be transferring to secondary school in September 2025.
• Only one objection was received during the 4-week representation period, despite the local authority having consulted widely with all relevant stakeholders.

The report noted that primary pupil numbers in Haringey have reduced by over 2,000 in just five years, from 21,300 in 2019 to 19,100 in 2024, and pupil numbers are forecast to continue falling until at least 2028. School funding is primarily determined by the number of children on roll, and falling rolls equate to reduced funding. This has meant that more and more schools are now facing serious financial pressures after year-on-year declines in their roll, resulting in smaller one-form entry schools such as St Peter in Chains and St Gildas' Catholic Infant and Junior Schools falling into financial deficit.

The council has a duty of care to ensure children in its schools are able to receive a good education and access the full curriculum. A school with a declining roll will be challenged to do this effectively because of inevitable financial pressures from reduced funding. Reduced funding can impact on the efficient running of schools, financial stability and education standards.

It is a principle of the council to protect Haringey's high quality of education, and this may be compromised where the cost of teaching staff, equipment, and enrichment activities become unaffordable. The link between pupil numbers and school funding means that it is not always feasible to keep a school operating to guarantee the standard of education families and pupils deserve.

It was noted that schools in the local area and across Haringey have a significant surplus of places, including equivalent Catholic schools. Furthermore, current school roll projections across Planning Area 2, where St Peter in Chains and St Gildas' Catholic Infant and Junior Schools are located, do not indicate any future demographic growth.

Full consultation had been undertaken over a period of several months, including meetings with staff, governors and parents, along with other interested stakeholders.

Alternative Options Considered

Alternative options that had been previously considered by decision-makers at the 11 February 2025 Cabinet meeting and were not favoured included:

• No change, i.e., continuation of the current strategy for school improvement without any further action to address falling local rolls
• Conversion to academy
• Federation
• Amalgamation resulting in the closure of St Peter in Chains and St Gildas' Catholic Infant and Junior Schools, with the displaced pupils being accommodated by another Catholic primary school
• Closure