Amalgamation Update
18 June 2025
Re: Final Decision on the Proposed Amalgamation of Barrow Hill Junior, Robinsfield Infant and George Eliot Primary Schools
Dear Parents and Carers
We hope you are well. We are writing to you in our capacity as Chairs of Governors of Robinsfield George Eliot Federation and Barrow Hill. We write to inform you of the final decision regarding the proposed amalgamation of Barrow Hill Junior, Robinsfield Infant and George Eliot Primary Schools and the creation of St John’s Wood Primary School.
Following the required consultation process, which included a governor-led consultation, meetings with staff and parents and a statutory notice period, the Cabinet Member for Children and Public Protection has made the decision to proceed with the amalgamation. Mr Cory Mclauchlan will be the Headteacher of our new school.
The key details regarding the amalgamation are as follows:
- Effective Date:The amalgamation will take effect on 1st September 2025.
- School Name:The amalgamated school will be named St John’s Wood Primary School.
- School Location:The Lower School (Nursery to Year 3) will be located on the current George Eliot Site, Marlborough Hill, NW8 0NH and the The Upper School (Year 4 to Year 6) will be located on the current Barrow Hill Site, Bridgeman Street, NW8 7AL. George Eliot Year 6 pupils will complete their education at the George Eliot Site. It is anticipated the Lower School will move to the Robinsfield Site after its redevelopment in 2-3 years.
We are pleased to share some key updates as we prepare for the opening of our new school. Please see below important information regarding arrangements for the autumn term:
- School Term Dates
Due to the amalgamation, we will be adjusting our autumn term dates. This will allow the staff team sufficient time to ensure a smooth and organised transition. As a result, we will welcome back pupils on Monday, 8th September 2025. - School Timings
|
Site |
Soft Start |
Formal Start |
End Time |
|
Lower School Site, Marlborough Hill |
8:45–9:05 AM |
9:05 AM |
3:25 PM |
|
Upper School Site, Bridgeman Street |
8:30–8:50 AM |
8:50 AM |
3:10 PM |
- Walking Bus
As St John's Wood Primary School will operate across a split site, we are exploring a supervised walking bus from September 2025 to help make these times easier, alongside our already planned staggered start and end to the school day. The idea behind the walking bus is to support parents and carers with drop off and pick up across our two sites (Lower School Site, Marlborough Hill and Upper School Site, Bridgeman Street).
Please complete this short form if you are interested in the walking bus - https://forms.gle/aQ1H4mE8V6ZxGZ9bA. We ask that you please complete the form by Friday 27th June 2025. We will share further information on the walking bus in the coming weeks.
- School Uniform
We are taking a flexible approach to uniform during the autumn term to allow time for consultation. Pupils are welcome to wear their current school uniform or their own clothes. We’ll be gathering feedback from families and other stakeholders to help shape a new policy for the spring term. - Wraparound Care
Wraparound care will continue to be provided by The Elms at the Lower School Site. We understand how vital external providers are to our families, so we are going to work with both the Adventure Playhub and The Winch to ensure that pupils can still be collected as usual. The Breakfast Club will continue to be offered at the Lower School Site from 8am. - Class Structure
From Year 1 to Year 5, classes will include pupils from the existing schools. Where necessary, we will rebalance classes to ensure the best possible learning environment for every child. We understand the importance of friendships and familiar faces, so we will make sure that each pupil is placed in a class with children they know. Our staff will work closely together to ensure that every child feels happy, settled, and ready to thrive in their new class. Year 6 classes will remain at their current school site. Based on current numbers, our Year 1 to Year 6 class sizes will remain small with the average class size having 22 pupils. - Hot Lunch Meals
Hot meals will continue to be provided for all pupils across both sites. - Our Curriculum
The new school’s curriculum will build on the strengths of our three founding schools. It will offer a rich, engaging, and inclusive learning experience for all pupils. More information on this will follow. - Staffing
The staff team will be familiar to pupils and families across all three of the schools. Pupils will recognise familiar faces in their year group areas, in the playground and during the school day. The senior leadership team will consist of Cory Mclauchlan, Headteacher, Pinal Sheth, Deputy Headteacher – Upper School, Laura Hayes, Deputy Headteacher – Lower School, Bouchra Benharch, Assistant Head, Megan Usher, Assistant Head and Charlotte Musgrave, Assistant Head and SENDCo. A complete staff structure will be circulated before the summer break and ahead of planned transition activities when pupils will meet their class teacher. We will continue to operate on a first name basis. - Meet the team
During the autumn term, we will hold our usual meet the team meetings so that you have the opportunity to meet the new year group teams.
The Governing Bodies appreciate that this decision will bring about some changes and perhaps a level of uncertainty. We want to assure you that the new school will build upon the strengths of Barrow Hill Junior, Robinsfield Infant and George Eliot Primary Schools providing a seamless learning experience for all pupils.
We are committed to ensuring a smooth transition for all pupils, staff, and the wider community. We will continue to provide updates and information as we progress towards the amalgamation.
We want to thank everyone who participated in the consultation process. We are confident that the new school will be a place where pupils can thrive and reach their full potential.
Sincerely
Nicola Bustin Jeff Masters / Gabbie Joseph
Chair of Governors Co-Chairs of Governors Robinsfield George Eliot Federation Barrow Hill Junior
Governor-led Consultation Update, SPRING 2025
3 April 2025
To Barrow Hill parents and carers
We are writing to update you on the outcome of our recent consultation regarding the proposal to amalgamate our school with Robinsfield Infant School and George Eliot Primary School to create a new St John’s Wood Primary School.
We want to start by thanking everyone who engaged in the process, participating in consultation meetings, discussing with other parents and carers, and submitting written responses. We understand it is not easy to contemplate change - especially to your children’s education - and it is right this is the subject of thoughtful, thorough, and robust debate.
We have carefully considered all the feedback we gained through the process and today publish the findings from the written responses. This is in two parts which are both available on the school’s website:
- A summary Report of the findings, which can be found here.
- The Annexes to the Report, which contain all the written comments we made (with only minor changes to preserve confidentiality). These Annexes can be found here.
Following the close of the consultation Barrow Hill governors have been involved in an extensive period of discussion and negotiation with the Local Authority and our partners at the Robinsfield George Eliot Federation. Given the consultation feedback, this took longer than expected. After much deliberation of alternatives, we have given our support to the Local Authority to proceed with the next stage of the consultation.
This was a very difficult decision, not least because of the many legitimate concerns parents and carers have raised. You will see in these documents there is little question that parents and carers who responded to the consultation are opposed to the proposal in its current form. However, having explored alternatives, we believe the proposal still offers the best available route to a sustainable future for our school. We understand this decision may not be welcomed by all.
We are incredibly proud of the outcome of Ofsted’s inspection this term, and that the school continues to be viewed by Ofsted as ‘good’. This speaks to the skill and dedication of our staff, and the strong partnership with parents and carers which is core to Barrow Hill’s identity. But the challenge of falling rolls across the three schools is real, and threatens the quality of education Barrow Hill can continue to provide.
As a result, we believe the interests of our school community is best served by working to address as many as possible of the issues parents and carers have raised and to realise the opportunities from combining resources across the three schools.
If the Local Authority decides to move to the next stage of the process, it will lead on a four-week consultation period. This is a wider consultation, inviting any person with an interest to comment. This stage is not led by the school governors but by the Local Authority. The school can, however, facilitate consultation meetings with the Local Authority if parents and carers would like this. The MP, Rachel Blake, may also be willing to host another consultation event.
As a governing body we remain committed to working with the school leadership, parents and carers to ensure the best possible quality of education for all our children, now and in the years ahead. While our formal role in the consultation process is now complete, we continue to welcome your feedback as we seek to ensure a sustainable future for our school.
Kind regards
Jeff and Gabbie
Jeff Masters and Gabbie Joseph
Co-chairs of Governors
Barrow Hill Junior School
Consultation #1
2 December 2024
To Barrow Hill parents and carers,
Today we are sending you something very important in the history of our school, and crucial to its future.
It’s a consultation document (please click the link below) including a proposal to amalgamate our school with two other local schools: Robinsfield Infants School and George Eliot Primary School. The proposal is to bring the schools together to create one St John’s Wood Primary School, starting in September 2025.
We know this is likely to come as a surprise to you, so we want to give you time to consider the idea fully.
Please read the document carefully: it contains a lot of information about why we are contemplating this change and what it will mean for our school. It is the product of a long and thoughtful process of discussion with Governors from Robinsfield and George Eliot, as well as the Local Authority.
As Barrow Hill Governors, we believe this change is in the best interests of our school. However, at this stage it is only a proposal. It is not a done deal, and we want to hear your views.
There will be two consultation events at Barrow Hill where you can share your thoughts, ask questions, and hear the views of other parents. These will be on:
- 9 December at 9:00am and
- 16 December at 4:30pm.
Please do come along if you can.
The document also includes a form for you to give your feedback. You have until 24 January 2025 to send your thoughts to consultation@bhjs.co.uk or hand them in at the school. This is a really important part of the process, and we encourage you to have your say.
The brilliant staff team at Barrow Hill have also been told about the proposal today. We respectfully ask that you use the consultation events and feedback form for your questions and thoughts rather than asking staff who are being consulted in a similar way.
One final thought. We understand it can be difficult to contemplate change. As Governors we are proud to be custodians of Barrow Hill and its history, ethos and traditions. It is an amazing school and a wonderful community. We are recommending this proposal because we believe it is the best way of securing for the long-term all that is best about Barrow Hill. The strengths of our school will be complemented by the strengths of Robinsfield and George Eliot, together offering for local parents and children a wonderful education for many years to come.
See you at the Winter Fair on Friday!
Kind regards
Jeff and Gabbie
Jeff Masters and Gabbie Joseph
Co-chairs of Governors
Barrow Hill Junior School
Governor-Led Consultation - Albanian
Governor-Led Consultation - Japanese
Governor-Led Consultation - Somali
Governor-Led Consultation - French
Governor-Led Consultation - Arabic
Governor-Led Consultation - Russian
Governor-Led Consultation - Bengali
Governor-Led Consultation - Hebrew
Westminster Primary School Place Planning and Projections Report 2023-24
Please click here to read this report which gives information on recommendations and actions to address surplus capacity of places in Westminster primary schools.
Governors Consultation - Frequently Asked Questions
Please click here for answers to frequently asked questions.
Governors Consultation - Letter to Parents 20 December 2024
20 December 2024
To Barrow Hill parents and carers,
Well done to everyone for making it to the end of another packed term at Barrow Hill. We hope those who joined our community in September have found it a warm and welcoming environment.
We also send a huge thank you to our staff team who do such a wonderful job. The vitality of our community and the success of our school is defined by your hard work, day-by-day, seen and unseen, and we appreciate all you do.
In the last few weeks Governors have been deeply involved in a spirited conversation with parents and carers about the future of our school. This follows the amalgamation proposal we shared at the start of December.
We understand that – to many – the idea of change has felt sudden and unwelcome, and it has taken some time to absorb. We have been pleased to see how much parents and carers have been energised to shape that change. This speaks really well of a strong and engaged parent body. It has been good to hear how much you value the school and really care about its future.
The conversation hasn’t always been comfortable for us, but we do welcome the questions, the challenge, and the ideas this dialogue is generating. It is important to continue this conversation and understand what matters most to you.
With this in mind – and in response to requests from parents and carers – we will hold two more consultation events at Barrow Hill in the new year. These will be on:
- Tuesday, 14 January 2025, from 9am to 11am
- Wednesday, 15 January 2025, from 6pm to 8pm
In addition, we understand some leaders in our community are organising gatherings for class groups and other groups of parents and carers. We strongly support this. If you want to use space in the school for this purpose, please let Audrey know to arrange this. If you would like a Governor to attend, we will try to come along if someone is available. Again, liaise with Audrey.
We are using the ‘News’ tab on the school website to add additional information relevant to the consultation.
Finally, to remind you, the consultation runs to 24 January 2025. In addition to the discussion in the meetings we strongly encourage you to fill in the consultation form, shared again with this letter. You can send it in to consultation@bhjs.co.uk or hand it in at the school.
We wish you a good break over the holidays and look forward to seeing everyone again in the new year.
Kind regards
Jeff and Gabbie
Jeff Masters and Gabbie Joseph
Co-chairs of Governors
Barrow Hill Junior School
Governors Consultation - Parent Questionnaire
Please click here for the parent questionnaire
