Consultation Outcome
Re: Consultation to increase PAN at IMFS and remove 6th form designation.
As you will be aware, between 21st November 2023 and 19th January 2024, IMFS consulted with stakeholders around two proposed changes.
- Increasing the pupil admission number (PAN) to 150 from September 2025
- Removing the 6th form designation from the school.
Rationale for these changes was provided at the time of consultation and all stakeholders were given the opportunity to raise questions or queries about the proposals.
In total we received twenty-four (24) responses from stakeholders, with a mix these we broken down as follows: –
| Members of local community | 2 |
| Parents of existing students | 18 |
| Staff members | 4 |
Of these responses, thirteen (13) were in favour of the proposals and eleven (11) did not support the decision. The queries raised around not supporting the decision were: –
| Concerns over increasing class sizes/staffing | 6 |
| Concerns of maintaining standards with increased students | 1 |
| Limited choice of 6th form | 1 |
| Unspecified | 3 |
Please see below the nature of questions raised, with our response/actions.
| Question/Query | Response/action |
| Will class sizes increase? | As the number of students increases in IMFS the number of staff in school will also rise. We will move from a 4-class entry to a 5-class entry in September 2025. Class sizes will therefore not increase. |
| Space for lunch and break? | It was identified that increased numbers of students will put additional pressure on the speed at which they can get through the dining room. As the PAN we move to groups of 150 in year 7 from 2025 we will still have smaller year groups of 120 further up the school. By combing these smaller groups with new larger ones, we can balance the numbers of students on each sitting. From September 2026 we would see 290-300 students in a lunch sitting, to mitigate the concerns raised by parents we are looking at modifications to the service area to allow increased flow of students, and if required additional seating. |
| Will increasing PAN provide fewer curriculum opportunities? | The opposite would be the case, with increased numbers of students in KS4 we will be able to offer a wider choice of GCSE subjects. |
| Can the building support this change? | The building was designed for 750 students in total, we can timetable the required classes into the spaces/classrooms we have. |
| Will flow of pupils be affected around the building? | The building was designed for 750 students in total, we already have systems in place to ensure students flow effectively around it, this will be reviewed and modified if required. |
| Will this limit 6th form choices? | There is a wealth of post-16 choices that serve the local area. For the 2023 leavers, the most popular destination was FE College, attracting 77 students (64%) of students a 16% increase on the 2022 leavers. The second most popular destination was Sixth Form College with (40 students) (23%) of students choosing this pathway. A 13% decrease from the previous year. Overall students progressed into 14 different providers. |
After careful consideration of the responses, I can confirm that we will proceed with the proposals. The pupil admission number (PAN) will increase to 150 from September 2025 and we will seek approval from the DfE regarding the removal of the sixth form designation.
Kind Regards,
Ray Parkinson
Principal
Ingleby Manor Free School & Sixth Form