Highbury Quadrant pupils with handmade signs chanted ‘Save our school’

TWO primary schools are facing closure due to falling pupil numbers but students, parents and teachers are fighting back against the plans.

Highbury Quadrant Primary and St Jude and St Paul’s Church of England Primary, near the border with Hackney, have been recommended for closure by Islington Council.

They are the latest in a trend which has already seen two primary schools close in recent years due to a reduction in applications.

Levels of funding for schools hinge on how many pupils are in the classroom.

A consultation survey is now under way to collect public feedback on the Town Hall’s proposals, but those worried about their school’s future feel little hope that they will be listened to.

On Wednesday morning, children held homemade signs and chanted “save our school” ­– a now familiar refrain in north London, where the birth rate is falling and families are priced out – as they marched from Highbury Quadrant (HQ) to protest outside Islington’s council offices in Upper Street.

The pupils were accom­­panied by teachers and parents, some of them in tears at the thought of generations of history coming to an end.

Mark Gillespie, caretaker at HQ for seven years, said it is the “togetherness” of the school that makes it special.

Rachelle Ramsay, whose five-year-old daughter has additional needs and is in Year 1 at HQ, told the Tribune: “From the get-go, the school has supported me. They have helped her incredibly with language and confidence.

“The level of care from the teachers here is incredible. It’s a crying shame to take something out of the community that is so important to everybody and has done such a good job for many years.”

Dominic Milne, whose two children have attended HQ, said: “It feels like a very rushed consultation, one that they’re trying to hurry through, which they’re not going to get away with. This school is a hugely important hub in the community. I think it’d be very convenient for the council if we just rolled over and allowed it but that’s not going to happen. It will be grossly unfair.

“We’ve had our austerity years, we should be looking to keep places like this together.”

Even HQ school alumni – who attended as long ago as the 1950s, when it opened – have contacted the Tribune to express sadness at Highbury Quadrant’s proposed closure, citing “magical” memories of discos, teachers and the celebrations there when Arsenal won the double in 1971.

The council’s proposals are based on data showing the two schools, both one-form entry, have only around half the number of pupils that they could accommodate, as well as other factors including the schools’ financial deficits and Ofsted ratings.

But Mr Milne added: “They’ve based that on the fact that this area is increasingly being inhabited by young professionals who don’t have kids, for gentrification reasons I suppose, but that’s not going to last forever.”

Teachers and a parent on the march

HQ has received declining Ofsted ratings over the past decade, from an Outstanding rating in 2011, to Good in 2014 and Requires Improvement in 2023.

The most recent report, however, notes that the school gives thoughtful tailored support to pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

SEND teaching assistant Sue Davis, who also joined the protest, said: “It’s such a tight-knit community and it’s very diverse. I think it’s just heart-wrenching. She hoped the protest was not in vain. “I pray that there might be a turn around,” she added.

Terry Sullivan, Islington National Education Union (NEU) co-secretary, told the Tribune that closing the schools would be “educational vandalism”.

He said: “Trying to close the schools just rips the heart out of the local community. It affects the most vulnerable, the most needy, more than anyone else. The council tell us they don’t want to do this but that their hands are tied, so we just want to help the council make the right decision.”

The proposals for HQ and St Jude and St Paul’s follow the closure earlier this year of Montem Primary, in Hornsey Road, which was merged with Duncombe Primary School, and the decision to shut Cally’s Blessed Sacrament Primary.

Parents at Pooles Park Primary in Finsbury Park had faced seeing it close before they won a legal appeal this summer to keep it open by turning it into an academy.

Gabriel Anstis, Vicar at St Augustine’s Church Highbury, next to Highbury Quadrant School

St Jude and St Paul’s is similarly exploring academisation rather than closing its doors for good after 167 years.

As the amount of money a school receives from central government is linked to how many pupils that school has, fewer pupils means less money for schools to spend on core costs like staff and building upkeep, meaning one-form entry schools are more expensive to run.

Mr Sullivan pointed out that a falling school roll is not exclusively an Islington problem as the high cost of living drives families out of central London, or councils are slow to build council homes bigger than one or two bedrooms, making it harder to house families.

He called for creative alternatives to school closures, such as a national campaign for increased government funding per pupil or special funding for inner city schools with falling pupil numbers.

Both schools would close on August 31 2025 if the council’s proposals are approved, and all students have been promised a place at alternative schools in the borough.

An Islington Council spokesperson said: “We are committed to putting children first and driving educational excellence through inclusive and sustainable schools.

“Across London, because of a falling birth rate and changes to the local population, pupil numbers are falling, and Islington is no exception. Our top priority is to ensure the best outcomes for our children and young people and to deliver what we need to effectively manage issues around capacity and ensure our schools are sustainable for the long term.

“We have worked closely with Highbury Quadrant for some time to explore alternative solutions and the proposed closure of a school is always the last option.”

“Islington Council’s executive will decide whether to proceed with the statutory process to close the school at its meeting on 13 February 2025.”

The primary schools already closed

MONTEM (1886-2024): The school’s story was brought to an end with a merger with nearby Duncombe Primary School

BLESSED SACRAMENT (1900-2024): The school was closed after the council said it had the most empty classroom chairs in the borough