140 year old school in Elstree marked for closure
A 140-year-old primary school in Elstree is set to close next year despite a hard-fought effort by staff and governors to buy it more time.
There is a campaign to save St Nicholas School, the only state primary school in Elstree village, which is facing the risk of closure.
Hertfordshire County Council’s Education, SEND & Inclusion cabinet panel met on Thursday, November 6, where plans to close St Nicholas Church of England Primary School in Elstree were discussed.
The risk was due to a potential consolidation of resources and a lack of pupils, which would require students to travel to other towns for education.
The situation is also complicated by a broader trend of primary school closures in the UK due to falling birth rates and declining pupil numbers.
Members were told that St Nicholas offers 15 places per year group, down from 30. It is currently running just three classes with mixed year groups due to just 53 pupils on its roll, down from 137 in 2021, with a marked decline in pre-school aged children living nearby.
Opening the meeting, panel chairman Cllr Mark Watkin said:
“Today will be a challenging day, it’s not a day that anybody will enjoy, but it’s a day we have to face because we have to look at the realities of the education service in Hertfordshire, and we have to ask the difficult questions."
“If we don’t ask those questions, then to be honest, situations may become untenable or unsustainable, so today is about looking at that.”
Cllr Caroline Clapper (Reform; Watling) wore a T-shirt with the slogan “There’s no place like St Nicholas: Save our school”, while three school representatives sat at the back of the chamber.
Cllr Clapper called for the consultation to be halted or deferred for a year to allow the school to complete its recovery and sustainability plan, which she said was “already well underway”.
She said:
“St Nicholas is not just a small village school, it is the heart of Elstree and the only Church of England primary school within six miles. It has served local families since 1884, providing a nurturing, inclusive environment rooted in its Christian ethos."
“Closing it would remove the only Anglican faith-based primary school in this part of Hertfordshire, reducing parental choice and diversity of provision at a time when these values matter more than ever."
We also spoke with Cllr Dan Ozarow, Mayor of Elstree & Borehamwood in a personal capacity.
He told us it is heart breaking to think that the school might have to close and stresses the damages it may cause to vulnerable SEND children, who attend the school.
Councillors voted for the public consultation on the school’s closure to go ahead, with eight votes in favour and five abstentions. This was ratified by the executive committee later in the afternoon.