Catholic Education Service – Written Evidence on Falling Primary School Rolls – FPS0008

1. The Catholic Education Service (CES) is the education agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales and represents the collective view of the Bishops to the British and Welsh governments on national education policy.

Executive Summary

2. Catholic primary schools:

•                            Between 2015 and 2020 Catholic primary school rolls in England went down by 239 pupils. Since 2020 they have dropped by 17,252.
•                            Catholic schools have much wider catchment areas than other state-funded schools, by up to ten times. Therefore, the reduction of discretionary local authority-funded home to school transport service can restrict how pupils access Catholic education, exacerbating any decline in pupil numbers.
•                            Underused space caused by falling rolls has led to Little Way Catholic Education Trust primary schools in the Diocese of Clifton creating additional inclusive settings for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). 
•                            Local authorities act both as education authorities and as education providers with their own schools, and a stronger national framework for collaboration with dioceses is necessary to prevent a conflict of interest.
•                            Greater investment is required in specialist schools for pupils with SEND whose needs cannot be met in mainstream schools.

Catholic schools

3. In England there are 1,728 Catholic primary schools (half of which are academies) educating 418,068 pupils, employing 22,104 members of staff. The Catholic Church is the second-largest provider of primary education in the country.

4. Catholic primary schools also provide just under 1,000 nurseries for local communities, a far greater quantity than of any private sector provider. 

5. Catholic schools tend to be located in urban areas, after originally being established to serve deprived immigrant communities, more recently welcoming pupils of families from Hong Kong and Ukraine. Catholic schools educate 52% more students from the most deprived backgrounds than other schools, according to the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI), with fewer students from more affluent areas. Many pupils at Catholic schools are ineligible for Free School Meals due to parental immigration status or low-paid casual employment.

6. Catholic schools provide vital support to families facing hardship. The CES has published the findings of a survey of our schools regarding child poverty. This details the challenges posed and measures implemented to tackle the issue, including breakfast clubs, school uniform support and more.

7. Catholic schools (including academies) and the land they are built on are owned by a diocese or religious order. A diocesan bishop is responsible for commissioning sufficient school places for Catholic children in the area, appointing foundation governors to governing boards of maintained schools and to academy trusts, ensuring a Catholic majority. Governing boards act as admissions authorities for Catholic schools. Diocesan officers work with local education authorities to ensure adequate school place planning for local children.

Falling rolls

How is demand for primary schools changing and expected to change?

8. Between 2015 and 2020 Catholic primary school rolls in England went down by 239 pupils. Since 2020 they have dropped by 17,252.

What are the causes of falling primary school rolls? How do the causes and scale of the issue diverge between different types of schools (for instance, local authority-run schools and academies) and between different areas in England?

9. With Catholic schools mostly concentrated in urban settings, a decline in the population of families living in these areas is consequently being reflected in falling primary school rolls. Reasons include falling birth rates and unaffordable housing costs.   

10. Catholic maintained schools in England are in the process of becoming academies, with many joining Catholic multi-academy trusts. The governing body of the school takes this decision for a range of reasons, including to help achieve economies of scale within a Catholic family of schools, to help offset reduced funding. An example of an economy of scale is a contract for lunchtime catering, at a lower price due to bulk purchasing and shared throughout all schools run by an academy trust. The overriding driver is to provide an improved education to their pupils which can be achieved through the collaborative model provided by a Catholic multi-academy trust. 

What are the impacts of falling primary school rolls? How do these differ by context?

11. The decline in primary school pupil numbers also reduces per-pupil funding available from the state for schools. This is taking place during a period which has seen considerable, and ongoing, increases in costs such as for utilities and national insurance.

12. Schools are having to combine year groups, with some schools teaching up to four different year groups in one class.

13. Local authorities consulting on plans to reduce discretionary home to school transport provision have taken place during the past few years, particularly in the midlands and the north of England.

14. Catholic schools have much wider catchment areas than other state-funded schools, by up to ten times. Therefore, the reduction of any discretionary local authority-funded home to school transport service restricts how pupils can access Catholic education, ultimately limiting parental choice. This can exacerbate any decline in pupil numbers, triggering the potential for school closures.

15. Funding cuts to school transport, in addition to prospective school closures, must not disproportionately reduce access to Catholic education. The Human Rights Act 1998 refers to the state respecting the right of parents to ensure an education for their children in accordance with their religious convictions, a concept which is also supported by the Church’s own teachings.

How can the impacts of falling primary school rolls be mitigated?

16. Little Way Catholic Education Trust is a family of six Catholic primary schools in Gloucestershire, in the Diocese of Clifton. In its schools the academy trust repurposes underused space, caused by falling pupil rolls, to provide additional inclusive facilities for pupils with SEND. This includes provision for children who would otherwise be in specialist schools or at home due to being on part-time timetables. Due to being present at school in this way the pupils also attend their mainstream class for part of the day, to apply what they have learned, often in terms of social interaction with others.  

What are the roles of Government, local authorities and schools in relation to changing demand for primary school places, particularly falling demand, and how are they monitoring and addressing the challenges presented by changing demand? How suitable are the powers, duties and processes in place? What are the implications of the actions being taken? How are learnings being shared?

17. A consistent approach nationally for collaboration between dioceses and local authorities is required so that the educational needs of every community are met. Dioceses work across wide geographical areas beyond local authority boundaries and with multiple local authorities. They experience inconsistencies in working relationships with local authorities in the application of admissions and placements frameworks. Amid falling rolls, the situation may worsen as local authorities act both as education authorities, and as education providers with their own schools. Appropriate mechanisms should be put in place at a local level to ensure the duty to cooperate, as detailed in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, is properly complied with and is working well.

What do you perceive are the implications of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act and the Department for Education’s white paper, Every child achieving and thriving, for falling primary school rolls and schools’ financial sufficiency?

18. A reduction in per-pupil funding due to falling primary school rolls risks SEND support capacity at the same time as a government prioritisation of more inclusive support in mainstream schools. School leaders have said that there is an increasing expectation on meeting very complex needs, including clinical-level needs and trauma-informed behaviours, beyond the training and professional remit of staff members.

19. The vast majority of children with SEND/complex needs come to school with no prior assessment of their needs having taken place. Many with high needs are not yet toilet trained, requiring physical care; there are also many with speech and language developmental delay, lacking socialisation, causing them to be isolated from the outset. Assessment can be a two or three-year wait – a local authority in the west of England has a three-year wait for an Educational Psychologist assessment.

20. In the meantime, schools must fund meeting a child’s needs from the existing budget, up to £6,000. Schools unable to fund the additional support risk the child falling behind or their deteriorating behaviour necessitating exclusion. In one particular school a child identified as requiring a place at a specialist school is still attending a mainstream school because there are no available places at a specialist school. The child’s violent behaviour has resulted in attendance being on a part-time timetable basis.

21. The 10 Catholic schools for pupils with SEND (eight non-maintained, two independent) in England work in partnership with local authorities in accepting placements, and also provide training for staff members of local mainstream schools. However, greater investment in specialist school places for pupils whose needs cannot be met in mainstream schools is required.

22. Multi-academy trusts work across multiple schools to enable effective provision including SEND provision. This must continue and cannot be interrupted by other possible groupings of schools for SEND provision.

23. Schools on the whole work diligently to support and include children with additional and high needs, but the consequences of the drop in the birthrate is making this harder to achieve.

03 June 2026