Purpose

Proposed
decision:
 
The Cabinet Member for
Education and Skills to agree to permanently expand  the age range of the Westmeads Infant School from 4-7 years to
2-7 years to establish a school run nursery provision.
 
Reason for the decision
As Westmeads Infant School is a community school, the
decision maker is the Local Authority and requires a statutory
process to lower the age range of the school. The proposal to lower
the age range therefore requires a public notice.
 
Background
In
Spring 2023, the Government announced its ambition of extending the
free entitlements to younger children in three phases. Phase one
implemented in April 2024, saw children of working parents entitled
to 15 hours of funding the term after they turned two. In September
2024, phase two will extend this offer to working parents of those
children aged 9 months plus and then in September 2025, phase three
will see the working parent entitlement extending to 30 hours for
all eligible children.
To
support the delivery of this project, the government has made
available £100m of capital funding for local authorities
through the Childcare Expansion Capital Grant of which Kent has
been awarded £2,658,723: 20% to support the schools
wraparound programme and 80% for the development of 2,741 early
years places to meet the demand of the new entitlements.
Westmeads Infant School currently provides early years education for
children who turn five when in the Reception class. The school have
proposed to lower the age range from 4-7 to 2-7 years to provide
nursery provision at the school.
The
proposed nursery provision at Westmeads
Infant School will be to open an ‘open air’, outdoor,
‘all weather’ nursery provision for 2-4 year olds
within a purpose built building that will incorporate larger
outdoor provision adjacent to the building on the school site. The
provision would admit 26 3-4 year olds and 13 2 year old
pupils.
The
Local Authority is confident that the strong and effective
leadership of the school has the capacity to establish a successful
nursery provision, so that there will be additional pre-school
places available for local families.
 

Securing Kent’s Future
 
The
'Securing Kent's Future' strategy outlines the measures that KCC
intend to take to ensure that Kent remains financially stable, now
and long into the future.  It describes
the statutory priorities, one of which being the statutory duty
to ensure sufficient school places are
available to any child or young person who requires
one.  This duty applies to Special
Educational Needs (SEN) provision, as well as mainstream
settings.
 
This
proposal is necessary for KCC to continue to deliver the statutory
duty, in a cost-effective way, in line with the guidelines
described in the Securing Kent's Future strategy. It will help to
maintain KCC’s strategic role in supporting schools in Kent
to deliver accessible, high quality education provision for all
families.
 
Framing Kent’s Future – Our Council Strategy
2022-2026
 
This proposal will help to support
Framing Kent’s Future – Our Council Strategy
(2022-2026) Priority 1 - Levelling up. ‘To maintain
KCC’s strategic role in supporting schools in Kent to deliver
accessible, high quality education provision for all
families.’
 
Legal
Implications
 
KCC, as the Local Authority
(LA), has a statutory duty to ensure sufficient school places are
available.  This duty applies to Special
Educational Needs (SEN) provision, as well as mainstream
settings.
 
The County Council’s
Commissioning Plan for Education Provision in Kent 2024 - 28 is a
five-year rolling plan which is updated annually.  It sets out KCC’s future plans as Strategic
Commissioner of Education Provision across all types and phases of
education in Kent. It also sets out how we
will carry out our responsibility for early education and
childcare. Early Education and Childcare is legislatively governed
by the Childcare Acts of 2006 and 2016. These place a duty on all
local authorities to improve outcomes for young children, to cut
inequalities between them, to secure sufficient childcare, with
adequate flexibility to allow parents to work.
 

https://www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/schools/education-provision/education-provision-plan
 
Statutory
Guidance on the changing of age range of a maintained school can be
found in the Making significant changes (‘prescribed
alterations’) to maintained schools Statutory guidance for
proposers and decision makers October 2024 This guidance primarily
relates to The School Organisation (Prescribed Alterations to
Maintained Schools) (England) Regulations 2013.
 
A statutory process is required to
lower the age range, which consists of an initial informal
consultation period of 4 weeks. Any objections will be considered
by the Cabinet Member in advance of taking a decision to issue the
Public Notice. Should significant objections, not already
considered by the Cabinet Member when taking this decision, be
received during the notice period, a separate decision may be
required dependent on the level of modification required in order
to continue the proposal and allow for proper consideration of the
points raised.
 

Decision

As Cabinet Member
for Education and Skills, I agree to:
 

Agree to Issue a Public Notice to permanently change the age
range of the Westmeads Infant School from 4-7 years to 2-7
years to establish a school run nursery provision, and following a
representation period of four weeks with no substantive objections
received, implement the decision.
Delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Children, Young
People and Education to Issue a Public Notice
Delegate authority for the Corporate Director of Children, Young
People and Education in consultation with the Cabinet Member for
Education and SEND  to make minor
revisions as required to the proposal following a
representation period of four weeks
Delegate authority for the Corporate Director of Children, Young
People and Education, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for
Education and SEND  to

take relevant actions including but not limited to
entering into relevant contracts or other legal agreements as
required, to implement the decision, subject to no new substantive
objections received during the notice period