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Pupils hold protest against proposed closure of their school
Pupils gathered outside the main entrance to Hotwells Primary School with homemade banners as their beloved school remains threatened with closure.
The protest was held as a question mark hangs over the future of Hotwells which looks likely to close and be merged with Cathedral Primary School.
‘One school, one dream, keep it open’ read one banner while another said ‘small but mighty’, the unofficial motto for the school on Albermarle Row.
Two websites have been created and two petitions started by parents at both schools angry for different reasons at the proposed amalgamation, which is being instigated by Cathedral Schools Trust (CST) – itself also in the middle of a proposed merger – who are ultimately responsible for both sites.
Some parents at Hotwells are concerned that their children would be forced to go to a religious school if the merger happens, with the school “a vital secular education option from our community”; with parents also saying the trust’s claim that the school is financially unviable is “unconvincing”.
“The situation is improving, despite the Trust having made little effort to support or invest in making the school sustainable,” says the website Save Hotwells Primary.
But the trust dispute this, saying that Hotwells Primary has had a reduced number of pupils on its roll for a number of years which has led to a cumulative deficit of around £500,000.
A CST document sent to parents says: “Smaller schools with low numbers of pupils are very difficult to run in a way that is financially viable and this is particularly challenging in inner city areas where there are lots of alternative options for parents and carers.”
Another nearby school, St George Primary on Queen’s Parade at the foot of Brandon Hill, closed in 2021 and is currently being temporarily used by Cathedral School Primary.
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Parents at Cathedral Primary meanwhile are angry that children from Hotwells would take up their own child’s place at Bristol Cathedral Choir School (BCCS); and also angry about transport issues which they say could become problematic with a split-site with younger children at the current Hotwells and older children at the Cathedral site as part of the same school.
Because Cathedral Primary does not have a catchment area, many parents drive their children to the school off Anchor Road from across the Bristol area.
The website Stop the CPS-Hotwells merger says that the proposed amalgamation would lead to a “nightmare commute” as well as seeing “CPS kids missing out on places at BCCS”.
Almost £3,500 has been raised from the Cathedral Primary School community via a crowdfunder to pay for legal costs to fight the plans, with a threatened judicial review of the merger process “if breaches are found”.
A 12-ft warning sign remains from when the entrance to Cathedral Primary School used to be a loading bay – photo: Martin Booth
The latest FAQs document from Cathedral Schools Trust said: “We recognise the logistical challenges to the proposed solution. If we submit a significant change application and if that is successful we will work closely with our communities to consider creative solutions to this problem. We will ensure that there is sufficient variation between the start and end times to enable parents, carers and pupils to move between the two sites.”
Another question asks: ‘How is it deemed acceptable to take the right of religious choice in school away from parents and families?’
CST answers: “The city will continue to have a range of schools of different types including faith and non faith schools that provide choice to parents and their families.”
In a letter to parents on Friday, the same day as the pupils’ protest at Hotwells, Trust in Learning Academies CEO Sue Elliott and Cathedral Schools Trust CEO Neil Blundell said that the amalgamation application is now expected to be considered by the Department for Education (DfE) in July instead of June as first thought.
They wrote: “We want to assure parents, carers, staff and all stakeholders that this is a routine part of the DfE’s internal processes and does not reflect any change in the merger proposal itself or in the very strong progress made so far.
“The proposal continues to move forward as planned, and both Trusts remain fully committed to this work.”
Main photo: Martin Booth
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