A small school which originally opened 150 years ago has been threatened with closure due to the small number of children enrolled at the school. St Barnabas Primary School is one of the few remaining local authority run schools after several new Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) have been built nearby.
Although the small school has the capacity for over 200 pupils there are currently around 70 in the school. The news of a potential closure left parents and pupils shocked and disappointed especially after the school had won a national Covid response award and was on track for an improved Ofsted result after the school came under new management recently.
Parents have banded together to try and save the school by setting up an online petition and campaigning for the school at the recent fireworks display at the Star and Garter pub in Montpelier. One mum of a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder said that she is “incredibly anxious” about the prospect of having to send her son to a different school after he settled in so well at St Barnabas.
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Lottie Cronk said: “We looked around 10 different schools and we felt really confident that St Barnabas could meet his needs. They have a really amazing SEND ethos and a really inclusive environment and we felt confident that he would be able to stay there throughout his whole primary education.
“In his reception class there are only 13 children, which is a really lovely number of children and it makes a huge difference to how the pupils and the teachers interact. He gets a lot of one-to-one support.
“We can’t believe it’s closing because we felt that we’ve absolutely landed on our feet with this school. It hasn’t got the best reputation and a lot of parents don’t consider it because of its Ofsted whereas once you actually get there you can see how happy the children are and how well they’re looked after in a really holistic way.
“I feel incredibly anxious because most of the local options are full or are not schools that are very well set up for children with SEND and sensory processing needs. The outdoor space at St Barnabas is literally like an oasis in the centre of Bristol and for an Autistic child who just sometimes needs space it’s marvellous.
“I know some SEND kids there who are not going to cope in a class of 30 so then they’re going to have to transition to a specialist provision, which is extraordinarily expensive. All these SEND kids are happy there and they’re thriving.”
The small school has a large outdoor space with a Multi Games Area, a small woodland and an area where children can grow their own vegetables. During the pandemic, parents said that every single child was provided with a laptop and the school won a national award as a result.
Gemma Summers whose child is in year 5 now said they love the school which she said has a focus on the child’s well being above results. She worries about her child, who lives in Easton, losing her friends and having to go to a school for one year where she won’t know anyone.
Gemma said: “They’re trying to close it down because there are so few pupils but they are looked after so much better than they would be in a bigger school. All the teachers know every kid really well.
“In some of the schools around here there are more kids in one year than there are in the whole school, which is terrifying. If they close she’d have to uproot herself for just one year before she goes to secondary school, it would be terrible.”
Sophie Higgins Wheeler, another parent, wrote on the petition that she set up to stop the closure that everyone was ‘shocked and devastated’ when they heard of the potential closure. In the petition she explains how the number of children attending the school ‘fell dramatically’ following the opening of two new primary schools nearby in 2012 and 2015, leading to a budget deficit.
“School leaders and governors tried everything they could to increase the number on roll, including bidding to be the site of an autism resource base which would have added two classes to the school, and applying to join a Multi-Academy Trust. Unfortunately they were blocked at every turn.
“The school community is now pulling together to fight against this short-sighted judgement, before the Council Cabinet makes their final decision in January. Our children deserve the chance to carry on learning with their friends and teachers, in a loving school where their needs are met by amazing staff who do not deserve to lose their jobs,” added Ms Wheeler.
A spokesperson for Bristol City Council said: “Following a steady decline in pupil numbers, the school’s governing body have decided, with the support from council officers, to begin a formal process to consult parents, carers and other stakeholders about its future.
"No decisions have been made and parent and carer feedback in this situation is vital to ensure school leaders and council officers can make appropriate recommendations for the school. Further consultation will take place during the course of November and all involved with the school will be kept informed of progress during this time.”
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