A £4 million Bath primary school that opened in 2017 has closed after failing to get enough pupils.
Abbot Alphege Academy at Beckford Drive in Bath
An application to amalgamate Abbot Alphege Academy (AAA) with Weston All Saints CofE Primary School (WASPS) was approved at a regional Department for Education meeting last month.
AAA, a Church of England school in The Partnership Trust, had only been 10% full.
AAA’s website reveals there have been no children in attendance since the end of September at the school at Beckford Drive, Lansdown.
The building will move into the control of Bath & North East Somerset Council and it is understood it will continue in community use.
The Hospital Education Reintegration Service is based on the top floor of AAA and is provided by The Mendip School, also a member of The Partnership Trust, for children in Years 1 to 11.
B&NES Council has committed to the service remaining in the building for the remainder of the current academic year.
AAA, with room for up to 210 children, opened through the free school route in response to the building of around 300 houses at the former Ensleigh Ministry of Defence site at Lansdown.
It was built on the former Royal High School playing field site next to the MoD.
However, projected numbers of pupils did not materialise, due to falling birth rates blamed on the cost-of-living crisis, and high interest rates, meaning many families have not been in a position to move.
With no evidence that the number of pupils would strengthen in the future, The Partnership Trust has been working with the council and Diocese of Bath and Wells to ensure the best outcomes for all pupils.
WASPS is also part of The Partnership Trust and is a Christian school. It has a Good rating from Ofsted.
AAA was told by Ofsted in 2022 that the quality of its education required improvement.
The Bath Echo contacted The Partnership Trust, the Bath & Wells Diocese and B&NES Council last week for comment about the closure of AAA. We have not yet received any responses.
The Partnership Trust consists of schools in B&NES and Somerset. The others are Moorlands Schools and Roundhill Primary School in Bath; Castle Primary School in Keynsham; Marksbury CofE Primary School; Farmborough Church Primary School; St Mary’s CofE Primary School at Writhlington; Paulton Infant School; Fosse Way School at Radstock; Pensford Primary School; Cameley CEVC Primary School; Chew Magna Primary School; Hayesdown First School and Nunney First School near Frome; The Mendip School near Shepton Mallet; and Horrington Primary School near Wells.
