Nottinghamshire County Council has been asked not to waste money on building a new school because there are already enough spaces for pupils.
A new primary school is proposed for the Fairham Pastures development, to the south of Clifton, alongside 3,000 homes, a business park, and traveller pitches.
The large-scale scheme was expected to leave 630 primary-aged children in need of a nearby school place by 2035, and developers allocated a three-hectare space for a new primary school near the centre of the development.
At first, the school would open with two classes for each year, with 420 places initially, with the opportunity to expand to three classes.
The school would also include a 39-place nursery. The council opened a consultation between 18 March and 29 April about the school proposal.
Around this time, council papers stated that the “expansion of existing [school] sites” was considered as an option to accommodate children living on the new estate, but stated there is “limited capacity at other schools”.
But consultation feedback appears to paint the opposite picture, with 19 out of 24 responses saying ‘no’ to a new school being built on the space.
Staff at Gotham School told the council, “Please do not waste the money” on the school, asking for the money to be invested into existing schools or providing a bus service that runs to other local schools.
A governor at Gotham Primary School said there was “even less demand” for school places in the East Leake planning area than what was identified in 2023/24, with this earlier projection showing 115 spare places by 2026/27, but 2024/25 data showing a rise of 172 spare places.
They continued: “There remain vacant primary places in the planning area in 2028, when over half the 3,000 homes are completed.”
The 2024/25 projection for pupils enrolled in Gotham was 169, but the actual number for this year was 143, showing 25 more places available than originally predicted – if the surplus carried forward, there would be over 30 places available here in 2027.
From this data, Rushcliffe’s Labour MP, James Naish, said in his response: “There is a risk, therefore, that this school is bigger than needed or that it accelerates the closure of smaller schools like at Gotham.”
He questioned the need for the three-form entry and said the impact on other schools could be “devastating”, asking the council to engage with Nottingham City Council to assess demand in “greater detail”.
Lantern Lane Primary School in East Leake staff and governors said they have “no confidence” in the council’s pupil place deficit projections, saying: “These appear far too optimistic – showing rising numbers in our reception intake year on year – and don’t reflect local/national trends about falling birth rates.”
According to data provided by the council, there is still a surplus of more than 80 school places in the East Leake planning area in the 2028/29 academic year before the added capacity of the new school would be added.
Staff at Gotham Primary School stated the school currently has 144 children enrolled against the total capacity for 210, adding: “I am very concerned about what will happen to my school if a new one opens in Fairham Pastures. There are not enough children for both. It would be far more cost-effective to put on a school bus and expand local schools.”
In a statement, Peter McConnochie, Director of Education, Learning and Inclusion at the council, said: “Any surplus capacity in or near the planning area is insufficient to meet long-term growth from this development.
“We understand concerns of a small number of responses to the consultation based on a short-term potential impact on school places. Yet any current surplus capacity is likely to have disappeared once a third of the development is completed and the homes are occupied, supporting the long-term need for a new school.”
He added any suggested building costs would be “purely speculative” at this stage.