At today’s (Wednesday December 18th 2024) meeting of the Council’s Education, Children’s & Families Committee a consultation was approved to take place in the new year.
Consultation on permanent closure of Springfield Nursery to begin soon
A consultation on the permanent closure of Springfield Nursery will now begin after the decision was recommended to move forward.
At the Education, Children & Families Committee meeting yesterday (Tuesday 3rd September), it was recommended the permanent closure of the nursery – based at Springfield School near the city centre - take place, pending the four-week public consultation.
Once responses are gathered from that consultation, a final decision on the permanent closure will be made within two months.
Due to a reduction in the number of children taking up a place in its nursery provision over several years, governors at Springfield School decided to temporarily close the nursery in September 2023.
There has been a reduction in the number of children taking up a place at the nursery over the last five years. Despite the best efforts of the school to improve this, children registered fell from 39 in the summer of 2018-2019 to just 15 in the summer of 2022-2023. The minimum number of children needed to make the nursery financially viable is 34.
Therefore, the nursery was running at a deficit, with money being used from the school’s central government funding to plug the gap. This was money that then could not be spent on the education of school-age pupils at the school.
If the nursery reopened, this financial deficit would continue.
Currently, there are no projected childcare shortage issues in this area for three-and-four-year-olds, with surplus places across the area available. Many of these alternate private settings also offer greater flexibility in hours due to being able to open during school holiday periods.
Springfield School has used the building during the nursery closure for other community uses, such as:
- Family and adult community education
- Parent and toddler groups
- Start Well programmes
- Family Intervention Service and Family Hub programmes
- Sheffield Children’s NHS Services – child health workshops for continence, school nursing, and public health nurses
- Afterschool club provision
- The school has also been able to focus more on meeting the needs of their Reception to Year 6 pupils with increasing SEND/EAL needs, by redirecting financial and physical resources
Should the nursery close permanently following the completion of the consultation, this will continue.
Cllr Dawn Dale, Chair of the Education, Children and Families Committee, said:
“While the Council can never be pleased to approve a decision such as this, the benefits to Springfield School of doing so are many.
“The school will be able to support their pupils more sufficiently, while community and health groups who really benefit those who live in the area can continue to do so moving forward in that space.
“We now want to hear from the community about their thoughts on this suggestion. Talk to us and let us know how this will affect you. We will listen to you and consider your views when making a final decision.”
The senior leadership of Springfield Primary School, alongside the school’s governors, have issued a joint statement saying:
“Springfield’s staff and governors have reached this decision with a heavy heart and wish to thank all the parents and the school community who have supported Springfield Nursery over the years.”
The four-week consultation will be launched in due course. Keep an eye on Sheffield City Council’s social media channels to be alerted when those who wish to take part in the consultation can do so.
