Purpose

Seeking approval from the Corporate Director
of Children's Services to progress to publication of statutory
notice and proposals relating to the amalgmation of 2 community
primary schools.

Decision

For the reasons set out in this report, the
Corporate Director of Children and Young People’s Services
has decided to:
1)   
Publish statutory proposals to close Lister Infant School and
Lister Junior School with effect from 31st August
2026
2)   
Publish a statutory proposal to establish a new primary school in
the premises of the existing schools. 
The new school – Lister Primary School – will be for
420 pupils, age range 4 to 11 years with a 60 (full time
equivalent) nursery class.  The
admission number will be 60 and the new school will open
1st September 2026.
 

Alternative options considered

A decision could be made not to amalgamate the
schools, however, as set out in Section 2 of this report, the
Council’s view remains that there is a strong rationale in
favour of amalgamation, and, therefore, this option is not
considered to be appropriate.
 
The amalgamation can be achieved via another
route – closing one school and expanding the age range of the
remaining school.  However, previous
amalgamations have avoided this option for the following reasons,
and this option is also not considered to be appropriate on this
occasion:

Opening a new school allows for a
complete reset of leadership, governance, and culture, which can
drive rapid improvement in standards. Extending an existing school
often carries forward legacy issues (e.g., performance challenges,
reputation).

A new school avoids perceived
favouritism toward one existing school and can unite communities
under a shared identity.

A new governing body and leadership
team can be appointed with a clear mandate for improvement, rather
than managing a complex transition within an existing
structure.
Extending an existing school can
overburden leadership and staff, especially if they are already
managing challenges.

A new school can offer a coherent
journey for pupils across all phases, with consistent ethos and
expectations.