A steady decline in the UK birth rate over the past 10 years, coupled with families moving away from areas where it is no longer affordable to live – including parts of central London – has left hundreds of primary schools having to adapt to falling numbers of children. The Department for Education expects the number of pupils at state-funded schools to decrease by 944,000 by 2032.
For school leaders with falling numbers of pupils, there are many unique challenges: delivering quality education to children on a smaller budget, managing greater pressure on teaching and support staff, meeting the needs of learners in mixed-aged classes and maintaining strategic governance are just some examples.
Hannah Trickett, headteacher at Maple Cross JMI and Nursery School in Rickmansworth, is no stranger to these challenges. TeachingTimes has spoken with her about the challenges of running a small school and how she has tapped into the Small Schools Programme from HFL Education (formerly Herts for Learning) to help maintain educational excellence amid falling roll numbers and budgets:
TeachingTimes: How long have you been headteacher at Maple Cross JMI and Nursery School? Have you always taught in a smaller school?
Hannah Trickett: I have been the headteacher at Maple Cross JMI and Nursery School since September 2018, having been the deputy headteacher there for just under four years before that.