Links to the Have Your Say Consultation and to register for the above meetings HERE
A significant step takes place today with the launch of the long-delayed consultation on the amalgamation of Carlton Vale Infant School and the Kilburn Park Foundation School.
In January 2026 Carlton Value had just 38 pupils, down from 48 the previous year, leading to a budget reduction of £67,319; while Kilburn Park had 55 pupils, down from 60 the previous year and a budget reduction of £33,309.
The plan is for the new, yet to be named, primary school, to be one form of entry - 30 pupils per age group. Reception to Year 6 would total 210 pupils - compared to a total of 98 presently in the current two schools combined.
However, the separate building project for a new primary school will be built for 210 pupils initially but with capacity for two forms of entry - 420 pupils plus nursery,
In the process The Kilburn Park Foundation School would lose its foundation status and the new school would become a normal local authority community school.
The Authority has expressed confidence that the regeneration of the South Kilburn estate will yield more pupils in the long run, although there are indications now that the amount of council/social family housing due to be built by the single developer (their appointment may be announced on Friday) will be reduced due to viability issues. Private housing is likely to yield fewer children. Brent Council believe that a brand new state of the art building will attract more pupils from the wider area.
The Council explain:
The proposal is that Carlton Vale Infant School and The Kilburn Park School Foundation are joined together to form one combined primary school from an agreed date (which could be 18 April 2028). The amalgamated school would initially occupy the site of the existing Kilburn Park School Foundation while a brand-new primary school building is erected on the site of Carlton Vale Infant School as part of the regeneration of the South Kilburn area of Brent. Once the new school building is complete, pupils would move in and the old Kilburn Park School Foundation building will be demolished and the land converted to open parkland for the use of the public.
The amalgamated school would provide 210 places in Reception to Year 6 (30 per year group). This is a reduction to the current capacity of the existing schools and reflects current demand for school places in the area. The new school building is being designed with capacity for an expansion to two forms of entry if there is a significant increase in demand in the future.
The plan to build a new school is separate to this proposal to amalgamate the schools. If agreed, amalgamation would occur before the new building is completed. Further information about this will be communicated to parents and staff at the appropriate time.
The decline in numbers of pupils reduces the school budget which is allocated per pupil, but there are other budgetary considerations:
Whilst most income depends on the total number of pupils, Carlton Vale Infant School and The Kilburn Park School Foundation currently also receive individual “lump sums” and sports premium grants. These would reduce on amalgamation with an estimated net cost of c.£169,500 per annum by 2029/30 (the final timescale depending on when amalgamation takes place). The full impact would only be felt two full years after amalgamation and could be at least partially mitigated by cost saving from any new building and through the generation of additional income.
The consultation paper outlines what the council sees as advantages in ethos and potential funding streams but note the tentative nature of the latter.
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In order to amalgamate the two schools, it is proposed to close one school and expand the age range of the other school. The governing body has indicated a preference for the combined school to be a community school, which is a local authority maintained school. This choice aligns with current government policy, promotes community engagement, and allows for greater autonomy in curriculum development and decision-making. As a community school, the combined school would be able to prioritise social inclusion and offer tailored support for disadvantaged students.
As a community school the local authority would continue to support the combined school, which may also have access to additional funding streams and resources, potentially leading to improved facilities and educational opportunities for students. Therefore, it is proposed Carlton Vale Infant School will be expanded and The Kilburn Park School Foundation would close. The new school would then be one Primary School.
The consultation closes on November 8th 2026. The Consultation document should be read in its entirety first and can be downloaded HERE
They’re having a laugh if they think the south kilburn redevelopment will lead to more children. Nobody wants these service charges, and the whole area is very unattractive now. It was better before! Perhaps they should just consider running schools with smaller numbers and show what can be done
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that with smaller numbers if you keep children in the appropriate age groups you still have to find the money for a teacher and classroom assistant for each class, as well as the heating, lighting overheads etc which will remain the same even with far fewer children in each classroom. As the school budget is mainly calculated on the number of pupils in the school that will mean less to go around. An alternative is to have mixed age classes which has advantages and disadvantages. The National Curriculum, tests etc are organised around age cohorts so there will be more to cover but it may mean a smoother transition a only half the class will move on at the end of the year. The hope of more pupils has to be contextualised in the London problem of lack of affordable housing leading to families moving out and thus a reduction in the overall number of pupils. Camden has had to close some schools and amalgamate others to cope with this. So far Brent has avoided closures by adding special needs units to some primary schools suffering from low numbers and empty rooms or federations where two schools share a governing body and staff. I would love to see community schools with classes of 12 or so like some private schools but there would have to be adjustments to school budgets (and government funding) to maintain their financial viability.
ReplyDeleteThere is a need to be remember here that the South Kilburn regeneration (re-development) is now in year 25. That is a long time, especially if you also add in how the estate was brutally run-down, down pressed and 'sink' neglected to become 'brownfield' from 1979 on. That spirit of neglect and run-down has sadly kept a continuity throughout the regeneration 25 years so far as well. Come and look f you don't believe that.
ReplyDeleteThe South Kilburn Estates Granville Road Public Open Space 1.3ha was mainly built on in 2010 and the South Kilburn Public Open Space park extension (and hopefully, finally its entire green upgrade) here, is an 18 years late replacement of a public open space loss. A community payback by Brent.
Only the most extreme developer would claim that Kilburn Tower Wall of 'sky houses' 2026 doesn't urgently need a pristine neighbourhood park as yet more towers build towards 2050.
The new school can be state of the art and like the green invested and grown park, be a place for neighbourhood life. It should have evening uses and relate to the park, outdoor learning, ecology trails....
With Leasehold Reform law changes enacted by 2029, its possible that future tower homes will be owned (rather than rented), meaning that neighbourhood quality and welfare state infrastructure provision to tower zone scale will need to match owners rights as is the case in conservation areas today.