Education chief Councillor Marcus Boyland

SCHOOL rolls have fallen to a new low, with an estimated 20 per cent of secondary school places available for next September not filled, Town Hall data has revealed.

Last week, the deadline to apply for a place in September 2026 at a Camden secondary school passed – and parents will not face the usual worries over whether they have got their first choice for their 11-year-old. Current surpluses for Year 7 entry shows one in five classroom desks empty, meaning pupils should land their first choices.

A Schools Forum meeting on Tuesday laid out the challenges facing headteachers and the Town Hall. Councillors heard that the 20 per cent “empty desk” figure was a “significant increase” on 2024 figures.

Schools chief Labour councillor Marcus Boyland told the New Journal that issues over falling pupil numbers meant unless action was taken, more school closures could be on the cards in the coming years.

He said: “We are working really hard to make sure we keep all of our schools open. They are the tent poles for a neighbourhood, fundamental to our communities. “We are currently looking at how we configure the offers from each school to make sure we do not have to go through any more closures. I cannot say it will never happen.”

The birthrate in Camden has fallen by more than a third since 2012, prompting problems with falling school rolls and financing education. This has led to a 25 per cent reduction in real-terms funding between 2019 and 2024, with school rolls falling by 2,250 places.

The Town Hall has lost £4.5million in funding annually from central government due to these figures. Added to this, the need for extra Special Educational Needs provision has risen sharply, with the council spending £16.8m, compared to £7.7m allocated in 2021.

Currently, schools receive between £5,000 to £11,000 a year per pupil, depending on their needs. Making sure the cash is used efficiently is a key element, added Cllr Boyland.

This has led to some headteachers taking on management roles across schools as executive heads, saving money and sharing best practices.  It also has seen schools share caretakers and business managers, to further whittle down costs.

Gospel Oak school head John Hayes now oversees work at Netley and Robson House schools, for example, said Cllr Boyland.

Cllr Boyland said: “We have created new management structures so headteachers can work across schools – which keeps talented headteachers working in the borough. The key challenge is the numbers. When I started this post in 2022, we were in the process of merging Rhyl and Carlton schools. St Dominic’s was closed by the Diocese, something we supported.

And the situation with falling rolls has not improved since.”

Cllr Boyland added that with around 30 per cent of children in Camden educated privately, the introduction of VAT on school fees might help parents decide to send their children to community schools instead of going private.

He said: “We have not seen any data yet but VAT on fees might give some parents pause for thought. We are hoping this might give numbers a bit of a bump but it will not be enough.”

The number of schools running a budget deficit has reached 12, while 41 per cent have been forced to draw on rainy day reserves to meet basic operating costs. The long-term solution was to build more homes so more families could settle in Camden, he added.

He said: “Data shows that 9,000 new private homes are expected to be built across London by 2027. In Camden that figure is just 60. We are trying to get as much affordable housing built as we can. Getting homes built is a priority and that will, in the long-term, help our schools.”