Admissions consultation

New Park Primary School is consulting with the local community on a proposal to reduce the PAN (pupil admission number).

Following a strategic review by school leaders and Trustees, we believe it is in the best interest of the pupils to reduce the PAN from 45 to 30 per year group. This change would be effective from September 2026.

New Park Primary Academy has been operating as a one form entry school for many years, despite having a PAN which would enable a one and a half form entry intake (up to 45). Currently, and for the past few years, each year group has had 30 or less pupils and therefore the school has moved to single year group classes. The current structure allows us to deliver effective provision and ensure that each year group benefits from an appropriate level of teaching, support and access to resources.  

We have looked closely at statistics for place planning in the area and can see that demand for places is unlikely to go beyond 30 in the coming years. It is in the best interests of the children to formally move to a one-form per year group set-up (by reducing the PAN to 30) to ensure the current structure can be maintained.

If the PAN remains at 45 there is a risk that classes could become oversized, or in a more extreme scenario, we would have to restructure classes and recruit additional class teachers and associate staff. We do not currently have space within school to create an additional classroom without significant financial implications.

The admissions arrangements themselves, in terms of the catchment areas and oversubscription criteria, will not change. Our current admissions policy can be viewed on our website.

This public consultation will run for six weeks until Friday 6 December 2024. We welcome the views of our local community and invite you to email any comments or questions to admin@newpark.nsat.org.uk .  After the consultation has closed, school leaders and Trustees will consider all the feedback before making a final decision.

Sasha Bune, Headteacher

New Park Primary Academy