Hackney teachers have warned the borough is at risk of becoming completely “childless” as the number of students in London’s schools continues to plummet.
Six more primary schools in Hackney are under threat of closure or merging - despite four already shutting their doors permanently this summer.
The latest round of closures comes amid growing fears of “ghost areas” across London as communities are destroyed by the number of families leaving the capital due to the cost-of-living crisis and housing prices.
Nataliya Nayda, who works at one of the Hackney schools at risk of closure, St Dominic’s Catholic Primary School, explained the decision feels “like the rug has been pulled from underneath us”.
The teacher, who has worked at the school for the past 24 years, told the Standard: “Families can not afford to live in the area any longer.
“It is true that the number of children was falling. Hackney Council have moved lots of our families to areas like Luton, outside of London - zone five or six.
“It is cheaper for them to pay for housing somewhere on the outskirts than to let the families live in Hackney – the rent is so expensive people can not afford it.
“The only families moving into Hackney are professionals who work in the city area and Canary Wharf area.
“They are not having children straight away so we are having less and less children in Hackney.”
On the steps of Hackney Town Hall, children led the lobby to save their schools.
— Hackney NEU (@HackneyNEU) October 1, 2024
They passionately asked @hackneycouncil to save their schools and keep them with their friends and teachers.
Schools are close knit communities that should not be split up. Listen to the kids! pic.twitter.com/U8NOWvkGYp
Ms Nayda added that parents have been coming to the school in tears as Hackney Council has moved them to temporary accommodation outside of London.
The school currently has a third as many children starting in reception as it used to and has lost an entire classroom of children in recent years, the teacher explained.
She continued: “We have lost quite a few families over the years.
“The families are devastated. It is not just a school it is a community. We go to church together, we celebrate mass together, the beginning of the year, harvest. We do a lot of charitable work.
“It does feel like a community. When we go to church together, parents come with us.
“Unfortunately when parents are offered spaces they will not be spaces in Catholic schools. They feel like their faith is being taken away from them.”
Teachers and parents have also warned that pupils moving schools could be “devastating” for children, particularly pupils who have special educational needs.
Carly Slingsby, another teacher at St Dominic’s Catholic Primary School, told the Standard that as many as 150 staff could be made redundant if the latest round of school closures go ahead in Hackney - as well as hundreds of pupils being misplaced and having to move schools.
The teacher has also raised concerns that the school site could be sold off “to the highest bidder in the development world”.
She said: “Schools aren’t just workplaces. They are your second home. That is your community.
“My school has a 150-year-old history. We still have grandmothers who pick up their grandkids who went to the school… Parents' choice is being stripped away.”
Despite the threat of closure and the drop in pupil numbers St Dominic’s Catholic Primary School still feels lively, according to parents.
Ronnie Haynes, who has a seven-year-old son at the school, said the school gates “are as vibrant as they always are”.
The mother said: “Arriving at St Dominic’s feels like turning up at a family member’s house—there’s a warmth and familiarity that’s hard to find elsewhere.
“We, as parents, have built a strong sense of community. There’s always someone to check in with, to have a chat, and to lean on. We look out for each other, and that’s something rare and special. It doesn’t feel empty at all—it feels like a family gathering.”
Pupil numbers are not just dropping in Hackney. Similar issues have been seen across the capital as figures show the number of pupils at London primary schools is falling twice as quickly as the national average.
A report by the Education Policy Institute found that the number of primary school-aged children in the city will drop by around 52,000 by 2028.
Birth rates have been falling across the country, but the decrease has been particularly exacerbated in the capital by the price of housing and the cost of living.
The teachers also warned that the problem may hit secondary schools within the decade forcing further schools to shut.
Ms Nadya told the Standard that Hackney “will end up childless” as the council is “firefighting” to solve the issue rather than having a long-term plan to deal with the drop in pupil numbers.
She added: “They are not tackling the problem all they are doing is closing the schools.
“In seven years there are going to be secondary schools closing. Then what next?
“The next year those kids are going to be moving on to different boroughs. What will happen next? You are going to be closing all of the schools in Hackney.”
Hackney Council told the Standard that the significant drop in pupil numbers in its primary schools will likely affect secondary schools in the next two to five years.
A spokesperson for the borough explained there are currently no plans to close or merge secondary schools and it is expected that “good results and popularity of Hackney secondary schools will help to protect some of them from the greatest impact”.
No final decision on which schools may have to merge or be closed is expected until April 2025.
Hackney councillor Anntoinette Bramble, cabinet member for children's services and education, said: “In recent years the majority of London boroughs, including Hackney, have been experiencing a significant fall in pupil numbers. The reasons for the decline in the number of children in London are unfortunately largely outside of the control of local authorities, such as lower birth rates, the cap on housing benefits, the cost of living, Brexit, and the pandemic.
“Whilst Hackney Council remains committed to providing more affordable family housing across the borough, delivering more than 1,000 new homes since 2011 and committing to starting 1,000 more by 2026, the housing crisis has also meant that many families have made the decision to leave London.
“Despite our continuous efforts to deliver new houses that are genuinely affordable, and our future plans for new Council and family housing, our projections continue to show that the demand for school places will remain low.
“Our Council, like so many other local authorities, is facing incredible financial challenges in trying to respond to the diverse needs of all our communities. It is our role to find the best possible solutions to make sure our schools are fit for the future, and to make the difficult choice of how to spend our very limited resources so that no child is left behind.”
