Faces of children impacted by prospect of 'devastating' Gloucester school closure

Parents are worried for their children as Moat Primary Academy in Gloucester continues to be under threat of closure. This is despite a consultation meeting and petition being launched.

Individual accounts from parents have outlined the impact they feel the closure shall have on their children and the long term impact the school closing is going to have.

One parent has outlined her daughter's journey being supported by teachers at the school after she was given a devastating diagnosis of stage four cancer and is living with the aftermath of her illness. Where another parent has stated their upset in having to move their child school to finish their last school year before starting secondary school.

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Moat Primary Academy is governed by Greenshaw Learning Trust who took over the running of the school along with neighbouring Robinswood Primary Academy, in November 2023. An email sent to parent earlier this month outlined plan to close Moat Primary Academy and merge it with Robinswood Primary Academy in the 'best interests of both schools'.

The statement read: "Before Moat Primary Academy and Robinswood Primary Academy joined the Greenshaw Learning Trust (GLT) from the Phoenix Learning Alliance (PLA), the Board of Trustees of PLA were actively considering amalgamating the two schools. This was put on hold whilst the schools transferred to GLT.

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"Trust Leaders and Trustees of the Greenshaw Learning Trust have been considering the future for both schools and have concluded that it would be in the best interests of both schools to amalgamate the provision on a single site at Robinswood Primary Academy.

"This would mean that Moat Primary Academy would close. The date for the closure, subject to the consultation and final decisions, is yet to be confirmed but it is anticipated that it will be either from 1 September 2025 or 1 September 2026.

"We believe that the amalgamation will benefit both schools. Creating one stronger, more resilient, better-resourced, and more financially sustainable school will better meet the needs of the community in the long run. By combining our talented staff and resources, we also believe we can further promote collaboration, and strengthen capacity in all areas, and ensure we deliver world-class education to all the children."

'We have been made false promises'

Michaela Christie, 32, from Matson said: "I have three children at the school. One of them is in year six so they are not going to be affected however my seven and five-year-old are going to be, and I was absolutely gutted to find out the school is looking to close.

"We were told when Greenshaw Learning Trust took over, the school was going to get lots of funding as the children had been missing out on lots of things like swimming lessons. The school trips, like the residential for example, are nothing compared to what Robinswood had and it is not fair. .

"I feel Greenshaw Learning Trust are only focused on Robinswood primary Academy and have been getting funding for them and not our school so our children can develop and learn and our children have been missing out. They even didn't involve the children at Moat in the wearing yellow for a Mental Health awareness day they had.

"I don't even know how Robinswood is going to cope with the bigger classes as they are going to need more teachers and teaching assistants. I do not understand why they could not have put the money towards improving Moat and better the school as it is at the moment.

"We have been made false promises and I feel Greenshaw Learning Trust has known all along they're going to close our school. The kitchen was closed weeks ago and we found out the hot dinners were being transported from Robinswood.

"There has been a consultation meeting date yet I think they have already made the decision to close the school."

'it is a place I hold dear to my heart'

Samantha Gardner, 35, from Matson, has a daughter at the school, and she is also a member of the PTA. Samantha said: "I have three children and two of them have been to Moat Primary Academy, and my youngest is there in year three.

"I went to the school myself as a child and I have to say I am very upset with being told the school could close as it is a place I hold dear to my heart.

"The teachers helped my son on his route to be diagnosed with autism. As the classes are smaller, they had time for him and were able to spot the challenges he was facing

"There is a lot to be said for the school having smaller classes and the children getting the access to a teacher and the support they need. The classes at Robinswood are going to be much larger and the children are not going to be able to get the attention they deserve.

"At the moment, the class teacher is able to sit down with a pupil who needs help and spend time with them. I worry this is going to be lost for my daughter when she has to go to a bigger school.

"I do not know how the schools around here are going to cope as there is a large housing development being built and there are not going to be enough schools for the children who are going to live around here, to attend."

'It is going to affect my son as he has anxiety'

Sharmaine Stanley, 27, from Matson, has three children who attend Moat Primary Academy. She said: "Basically the school has been left with no funding as it is all going to Robinswood.

"Us parents have been taking it upon ourselves to fundraise for the school. However its not much good in the first place not providing the school with what it needs.

"The children who go there are used to small class sizes and Robinswood is much bigger. It is going to affect my son as he has anxiety, and going to a large school where it is going to be louder.

"I am concerned my children are not going to get the level of support they have been getting on a one-to-one basis so they can overcome any learning obstacles they may come up against.

"My children have found stability in the school with their teacher and the setting is more like a family. We all know each other and are there for one another.

"The teachers know all of my kids, their past and needs. They even know down to my son's asthma wheeze plan which we had gone through together from when he came out of hospital.

It makes me worry as with bigger classes, would a teacher notice him declining. We have a plan at his school with the inhalers and it has been like this ever since he started at the school.

"It would be mayhem in the mornings to get the children to Robinswood with all of the traffic.

"The move is going to scramble the children's heads with all the upheaval and it is a pivotal time for children's education when they are at primary school."

'When I first found out they were going to close the school I did cry'

Kirsty Harnden, 35, from White City has two children, her daughter Daisy who is seven-years-old who attends the school and a one-year-old. Her daughter was diagnosed with cancer and has been supported while she was at the school.

Kirsty said: "When I first found out they were going to close the school I did cry. I have a little one who was due to go into Rising Twos and I hoped my youngest would be able to go into the pre-school.

"Daisy was diagnosed with cancer when she was two-years-old, and she missed the first year of being at pre-school. She was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma and was in hospital for treatment and missed pre-school for the first year and fell behind with her schooling.

"The teachers at the school have been so good with my daughter and they have helped her with getting an EHCP for her as we are unsure if the cancer in her brain has impacted her development. We are not going to know the full extent of this until she gets older.

"I am worried another school will not be able to accept my daughter as they can only take so many with EHCPs from what I have been told. I do not know where there is a school I can send her with her EHCP near to where we live.

"I feel bad for her with everything she has been through. It's not her fault and I do not like the thought of her getting even further behind if I can not find a school for her.

"I do not want to have to go through all of this again with explaining everything what has happened to her. Daisy has been through enough."

'It is going to affect my son who has social and emotional needs'

Sian Davis, 31, from Tuffley has a child with additional needs at the school. She said: "I am shocked and angry to be honest with you. The prospect of closing the school is horrendous.

"The school closing is going to have a massive impact on the children. It is going to affect my son who has social and emotional needs and needs support to communicate.

"My son is in the Bridge class which helps children who have struggles. The teachers are working with him and they know him and his triggers and are teaching him how to manage his emotions, and they find the support these children can have.

"It seems the school is going to close with him only having a year left before secondary. So he is going to have the upheaval of a new school for one year and then again the following year.

"We think my son is autistic and ADHD and awaiting diagnosis. The teachers at the school get people in to school to assess to get an EHCP in place.

"My son was in another school and I took him out and got him into Moat primary school. I do know which other school I am going to send him to if it closes.

"I sent him to Moat to benefit his needs and he can get teaching support as it is a much smaller school than many others. The class he is in has benefited him in so many ways and it is not fair to make him leave to have his final year somewhere else.

"The decision to propose the school closure is horrendous. None of us parents have been prepared for this."

'I decided to send my children to the school for a reason and it is because the school is small'

The petition has been raised by mum-of-four, Abigail Gardner who is 30, from Matson. The petition states: "Greenshaw Learning Trust are actively considering closing Moat Primary Academy and amalgamating with Robinswood Primary School.

"This is devastating for the Matson community as families will only have one option for their child and children's educational setting. This closure could see class sizes increase, due to the new housing development in Winnycroft Lane. We need your support.

Abigail said: "The prospect of closing Moat Primary Academy is rubbish. I decided to send my children to the school for a reason and it is because the school is small and my children get the teacher support and education they do as it is a one-form entry.

"There are many children which attend the school who have special needs or are in the process of being assessed. My son is currently being assessed for ADHD and already we can see he does not like big crowds, busy places or change, so moving him to a far bigger school is not going to be good for him.

"To be honest I am fuming with the thought of the school closing. Greenshaw Learning Trust I think have already made the decision to close the school.

"They are not thinking about the children and how they are going to affect them and their mental health. The trust are going to be doing whatever they like however we can try and make them listen."

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