School place planning and organisation

As a council, we have a duty to ensure that sufficient places are available in our area in terms of number, diversity in provision and increasing opportunities for parental choice.

This applies to primary and secondary schools in Ealing but does not apply to early years and special schools. This duty applies irrespective of whether the local authority (LA) maintains any schools in a particular sector.

The most frequent question that schools and other interested parties ask about school places is “What is the local authority going to do about it – “it” meaning, a shortage of certain categories of schools or surplus of places.

School organisation principles document sets out the general principles and factors which will guide decisions on school organisation. The guide sets out:

• the local authority’s role and the principles that guide its decision-making in respect of maintained schools.
• the role of the local authority in making proposals to other bodies that have decision-making powers around school places including other councils, governing bodies, Trusts and government agencies. This is because the local authority is not the sole provider of places.

The school organisation statutory guidance (GOV.UK) sets out which organisations can propose changes and those that can make decisions.

School place planning and organisation working group (SPPOWG)

The purpose of the group is to inform the development and delivery of responses to changes in demand for mainstream, specialist, and / or alternative provision.

SPPOWG terms of reference, meeting notes, minutes, agendas and papers

SEND SPPOWG terms of reference, meeting notes, minutes, agendas and papers