Agenda item

Report of the Director of Childrens and Education

Note: The Education and Children’s Services Scrutiny Board (2) and the Cabinet Member for Education and Skills have been invited to the meeting for this item.

The Scrutiny Co-ordination Committee considered a report of the Director of Children and Education Services, that set out the Coventry One Strategic Plan an Education Capital Programme 2025-2029.

Members of the Education and Children’s Services Scrutiny Board (2) were invited to attend the meeting for the consideration of this matter.

The Committee noted that the report was also due to be considered but the Cabinet at its meeting scheduled for 17^th March 2026.

Under Section 14 of the Education Act 1996, Coventry City Council has a statutory duty to ensure sufficient school places and fair, appropriate access to education.  It is the City Council’s role to plan, commission and organise school places in a way that raises standards and manages supply and demand.

The Coventry One Strategic Plan, attached as an Appendix to the report, sets out pupil forecasts for primary and secondary education and Special Needs (SEND) across education planning areas in response to pupil cohorts across the city.  The Strategy will be a flexible plan, which is able to adapt to shifting mechanisms of parental preference, unforeseen changes in supply and demand of school places, and future birth rates.  To do this, officers regularly review school place planning, and the One Strategic Plan will be monitored and updated annually with presentation to the Cabinet.

There is commitment through a statement of intent to: collaborate and work in partnership to achieve the best possible outcome for children and young people in Coventry, ensure the sustainability of Coventry Schools; and to enable the City Council to meet its statutory obligations.  The options within the One Strategic Plan have been discussed at Coventry Education Partnership meetings, which include academy trust CEOs, headteachers and education colleagues from across the city.

The Strategy outlined in the One Strategic Plan is in line with the Department for Education (DfE) statutory requirements to:

·  Spend capital funding efficiently

·  Safeguard the quality of places in the system

·  Utilise spare capacity in the estate where it exists.

The Committee noted that the Capital allocations to meet projected shortfalls in provision are provided by the DfE to all Local Authorities based on the data provided in the annual School Capacity return (SCAP).  Demand for places, minus the supply of places, is multiplied by a cost per pupil place to inform the final allocation.  The return informs the DfE of the expected change in pupil numbers over the medium term, the current capacity of schools to meet those numbers, and the planned changes to that capacity.  Funding is also secured via S106 contributions from housing developers in response to new housing estates. The proposed program of work is fully funded utilising existing resources as set out within the education capital programme.

From the 2021/22 academic year, there has been a large increase in the number of pupils moving into the city in-year.  The impact of this in-year movement has been that more places are required in schools than originally forecast, using up spare capacity and, in some year groups, causing sufficiency pressures.  In response a review and update forecast methodology has taken place and additional school expansions identified.  Since September 2024, in-year growth has decreased and a range of growth expectations to inform forecasts and ensure sufficient supply of school places continues to be factored.

Due to the increase in the in-year pupil numbers indicated, bulge classes have been introduced in nine primary schools across the city in years 1 to 5.  This increase in demand has also required expansions in secondary schools, particularly in years 7 and 8.  These measures have helped address immediate pressures on school capacity.  However, further expansion is necessary to ensure sufficient school places are available to meet future forecast demand. Ongoing planning and funding would be essential to maintain access to quality education as the pupil population changes.  Three secondary school expansions are planned for September 2027 at President Kennedy, Westwood and Cardinal Wiseman.  Work is underway to deliver additional space required on the existing school sites.  These expansions are subject to planning consent and delivery of building works.

The Committee and Scrutiny Board (2) members were able to ask questions, received answers and made comments in respect of the following:

·  Why proposals are to build primary schools rather than primary, secondary and SEND schools;

·  In some cases, schools are surrounded by housing and are not able to expend, why are expansion not located in new areas;

·  Where have the additional staff come from in respect of bulge classes, particularly in relation to SEND;

·  What skillset is required to ensure adequate support for children with SEND;

·  Whether the in-year increase is in particularly key stages or universal across education;

·  What the plan is for additional school places in the Eastern Green area;

·  When Woodlands School opens for SEND children, will it be filled or partly filled by children already in SEND schools and how many additional spaces will be available compared to the current SEND provision;

·  What confidence can be placed on the projected calculations for required school places in the Eastern Green area;

·  In light of public perception about the need for additional schools, how long will it be before the additional schools highlighted will be available.

·  Is there confidence that S106 lands are secure for educational purposes and won’t need to be given back in 5 years.

During the course of the discussions on the report, it was agreed that additional information considered by Scrutiny Board (2) in respect of SEND and the all Members seminar in relation to education matters, be circulated to all Committee Members.

RESOLVED that, the Scrutiny Co-ordination Committee note the report and confirm that there are no comments or recommendations from the Committee to the Cabinet.