Plans are underway to turn Soho's last primary school into London's "most creative" as the local community bids to take over the provision. Soho Parish, which has taught children from its Great Windmill Street base since the late 19th century, faced potential closure under a proposal to merge it with All Souls primary in Fitzrovia.
Falling pupil numbers prompt action
The school said it was having to take action due to a significant fall in pupil numbers. The plans were abandoned after the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) revealed details of the amalgamation. Since then a community takeover bid has been launched, with a meeting convened by Westminster City Council and attended by key stakeholders held early last week.
Alice MacDonnell, whose son went to Soho Parish, is among the voices calling for the school to shift its ethos and become a more creative provision. She said: "Having worked in education for almost 10 years I have known so many amazing teachers and educators who have left education because of being fed up with the restrictive ways of teaching, focused on meaningless targets and box ticking instead of encouraging children to enjoy the process of learning."
Creative curriculum planned
MacDonnell outlined the proposed curriculum: "We will be driving a creative thinking focus in our curriculum, installing a rounded, varied education including such methods as STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activities, project based learning and using art as a tool for teaching. An important feature of our school is that we'll be drawing on our natural resources by using 'London' as our second classroom. With at least 12 trips a year, many collaborative local projects, and frequently bringing inspiring guests to visit the school, we seek to build London's most creative primary school."
Mark Featherstone-Witty, founder of the Brit School and Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA), is consulting on the proposed shift. MacDonnell said she believes there is a gap in the market for a new creative school in the heart of the City, and that this may be a way of arresting falling pupil rolls.
Addressing arts funding cuts
"I teach my own programmes in primary schools across London, and have witnessed first-hand what works well and what certainly needs work," she said. "From my experiences, and speaking to many parents and educationalists, there is a strong need for a school that encourages creative thinking and learning. Children are naturally inquisitive and we want to nurture and encourage this. We're also in a position at the moment [where funding for] arts in all forms is being financially slashed in schools. Our belief is that creative teaching and the arts go hand-in-hand. Schools are there to provide so much more than statistics and a child's all encompassing experience of education should be exciting and confidence-building to result in a happy child. We will be using inspiring pedagogy in our classrooms, stimulating activities, and have a strong focus on teaching through the medium of art."
School status under discussion
Soho Parish is a local authority-managed state school, meaning it is funded by the Department for Education (DfE) and is obliged to teach the national curriculum. Asked whether the status of the school would change under the plans, MacDonnell, who is a descendent of V&A founder Sir Henry Cole, said this will be discussed over the coming weeks. She added the idea is creating "a lot of interest" with decision makers and the wider community.
MacDonnell said there has been a sense of frustration with the current management of Soho Parish among parents, in large part due to a breakdown in communication. "Once businesses, locals, alumni, etc knew how bad the situation had become we quickly gathered to stop the proposed closure," she said. "We are currently building a rapidly growing list of high profile people, institutes, supporters, who support this vision of London's leading arts based creative school. To put it simply, the ship has not been led by the right captain for the past few years but we are now stepping in to sail it to the future."
School's perspective on challenges
The school was approached for comment but had not responded at the time of publication. They previously told the Guardian: "Soho Parish C of E primary school is a unique school - but the challenges we face are not unique. Our falling roll means that our revenue reserves deficit continues to grow. The reality is that we had close to 180 children before Covid, and next September we will be welcoming close to 65 children. Given that schools are funded on a per pupil basis, we are having to look at all options to explore how to support the school to continue to thrive. We are already working closely with the council and look forward to engaging with their Isos [consultancy report] process moving forward."
Council support for community vision
Tim Barnes, a West End Conservative councillor and Deputy Leader of the local authority, said he is keen to see "all options investigated that will see Soho Parish School thrive and develop". He continued: "The school has a great record of delivering a wonderful education experience for thousands upon thousands of young people over the years and is a hugely important part of the Soho community as can be seen from the support the school receives each year though the FoodFest, the Christmas lights designed by pupils that appear on our lampposts and the incredible levels of engagement. There are already numerous links with Soho's creative community and it would be great to see those expanded further. I have every confidence we will see a strong future for the school that every child and parent will welcome."
Cllr Hannah Galley, Cabinet Member for Children and Education, said falling pupil numbers are affecting schools across Central London, with Soho Parish no exception. "We're working closely with the school, parents and the diocese through the Isos Partnership review process to look honestly at every option - including what it would take to keep the school open - before any decision is made. We know how unsettling this uncertainty is for families, and we, along with the school, will keep them informed at every stage. The diocese and the school itself would be keen to hear more about the community's vision for the school given the challenges it is facing due to falling rolls."
Community integral to school's future
The underlying motivation driving MacDonnell and other stakeholders is securing the future of the school, which they say is "integral" to the community. "Families have always lived in Soho," MacDonnell said. "There are three parents at the school now who went to the school themselves. I know there is one girl at the school in Year 2 whose father went to the school 30 years ago, and her grandmother works on Berwick Street Market. The Soho community is very much still here and the school is what will keep us here for many generations."
A second council-convened meeting on the school is expected to take place in the next couple of weeks.
