Richmond schools are set to reduce the number of places offered in response to declining primary school rolls, according to a recent meeting of the Richmond Schools Forum.
The forum received an update on school place planning, which highlighted a decrease in demand for primary school places. For September 2025, there were 71 fewer in-borough applications for Reception places compared to the previous year. Overall, in-borough application numbers have decreased by 691 since 2015.
The current occupancy level across primary schools in Richmond is 84.5% against permanent Published Admission Numbers (PANs) and 92.6% against PANs with temporary reductions. There are 2,819 vacancies across all primary schools based on permanent PAN, compared to 2,530 last year. Fifteen schools are currently below 80% capacity.
In response to the falling rolls, temporary reductions of PANs have been agreed for several primary schools. For September 2025, 11 forms of entry (FE) are being removed from nine schools, plus two FE from Year 3 at two junior schools. Permanent reductions in forms of entry will be implemented at Hampton Wick Infant, Stanley, Trafalgar Infant, and Trafalgar Junior schools from September 2026.
While primary school places are decreasing, demand for secondary school places remains high. There has been a 13.1% increase in in-borough applications for Year 7 places between 2015 and 2025. The current occupancy level across all secondary schools is 100.6% against PAN and 99.5% against current capacity. In the east of the borough, schools are at 105.2% capacity against PAN.
The Department for Education (DfE) is reviewing the proposed Livingstone Academy West London, a secondary school planned for the Stag Brewery redevelopment. The opening of the London River Academy is delayed until 2027, requiring contingency plans.
The Schools Forum also received updates on the 2024/25 finance outturn and the 2025/26 finance update. The borough spent £216.593m on Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) funded education services in 2024/25, resulting in a £3.555m shortfall. The latest DSG allocation for 2025/26 is £235.641m, but a £3.445m shortfall is projected.
The Schools Forum approved an update to the [Scheme for Financing Schools][Item 10 Scheme for Financing Schools 1] for maintained schools for the 2025/26 financial year. The updated scheme includes a provision to pay undisputed energy invoices from a school's budget share, specifically when a school has an agreement with the Secretary of State for energy supply and fails to pay the invoice.
