Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Primary and Secondary School Places: North East Bedfordshire

Monday 6 September 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Richard Fuller asked about the number of primary and secondary school places in North East Bedfordshire constituency.
  • The borough of Bedford had nearly 18,000 state-funded primary school places and more than 14,000 state-funded secondary school places as of 1 May.
  • Central Bedfordshire had more than 23,000 state-funded primary school places and nearly 25,000 state-funded secondary school places as of 1 May.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Richard Fuller Con North Bedfordshire
Education
Context

The question arises from concerns about school capacity and population growth. Recent funding has supported Raynsford Academy, but parents face issues accessing local schools.

Question

What recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) primary and (b) secondary school places in North East Bedfordshire constituency?

Answer from Nick Gibb

As of 1 May, the borough of Bedford had nearly 18,000 state-funded primary school places and more than 14,000 state-funded secondary school places. Central Bedfordshire had more than 23,000 state-funded primary school places and nearly 25,000 state-funded secondary school places.

Answered
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Q2 Richard Fuller Con North Bedfordshire
Education Housing Local Government
Context

The question addresses the population growth and resultant pressure on school capacity, highlighting specific issues at Raynsford Academy and Sharnbook.

Question

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for the continuous funding support for Bedford borough and Central Bedfordshire, but he will be aware, given the emergency funding provided by the Government for Raynsford Academy so that it could convert to a primary starting in September, the issues around Langford village and parents not being able to get into the local school and the desperate need for a two-form entry in Sharnbook, that population growth in North East Bedfordshire, which is five times the average of that of all Members' constituencies, puts continual pressure on school places. Will he and his Department work closely with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure that we fully implement our commitment to infrastructure first?

Answer from Nick Gibb

Yes, of course. I am happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss these issues in more detail. He will know that since 2010, we have seen an additional 8,300 primary school places in the borough of Bedford and an increase of 5,800 in primary school places in Central Bedfordshire. We have allocated £12.7 million just this coming year to provide new school places needed for 2023. That takes total funding to Central Bedfordshire for new school places between 2011 and 2023 to £105.3 million, but I will happily meet my hon. Friend to discuss future plans further.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific commitment to work closely with the MHCLG was not explicitly addressed beyond an offer to meet and discuss.

How: Yes, Of Course.

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