FAQs

We have explored several options which, after careful consideration, exploration and planning, would not be suitable or viable. Members of the public are invited to propose additional options as part of the consultation.  

We know that consultations for school closures present many challenges and recognise that there is no good time to launch a consultation of this nature. We considered the impact on students taking exams and wanted to ensure the process was completed ahead of exams.

We have worked with Monkseaton High School and other partners to explore options to make the school viable for the future. The options that have been considered have been dismissed either because they are not financially viable, or because agreement could not be reached. These options are:

• To close the sixth form  
• Monkseaton High School to retain Years 9,10,11 and become the sixth form venue for the Whitley Bay, Monkseaton and North Shields area. 
• To co-locate with Monkseaton Middle School. 
• To explore moving the three-tier system to a two-tier system of education. 
• Changing part of the Monkseaton catchment area into a two-tier system 
• To bring Monkseaton High School and Whitley Bay High School together under one governing body  
• Monkseaton High School to become a secondary school, i.e. admit pupils in Year 7.   
• Exploring opportunities for the school to join an existing multi-academy trust. 

The school has been in deficit since 2016. School leaders and governors have worked with the Council to try to address this, and we’ve put in place a number of measures to try to reduce the deficit. They include reducing staff and the curriculum on offer, restructures, challenging spending decisions and requests for additional funding from The Department for Education. It is clear that these measures, while they have saved money, cannot completely resolve the deficit.  

The responsibility for setting a balanced budget lies with School Leaders and Governors. While the Council helps schools and has to approve any school requesting to set a deficit budget, it does not directly fund schools or determine how budgets should be set.

Since 2016 the Council has worked alongside school leaders and Governors to reduce the deficit. This work has included:

• Introducing changes to staffing structures, taking into account factors such as class size and range of curriculum. 
• Explored alternative income streams including rental of buildings and playing fields. 
• Reducing running costs by ensuring all costs such as energy and buying materials deliver value for money. 
• Seeking additional funding through regular discussions with the Department for Education.

Last year, the Council received an additional £1.9 million funding for schools in deficit and the scale of the deficit at Monkseaton High School means it received the largest share of £0.678m. 

If at the end of the consultation process closure is put forward, it is proposed this is completed over a two-year period through to 31 August 2026. This is because it is not possible to sustain the school for longer while delivering high quality education due to the impact closure could have on staff retention and building capacity. The deficit would likely increase by around one million in this additional year.

Our aim as a Council is to ensure the continuation of high-quality education for young people. We have carefully considered the impact of transition to another school for the current Year 9 Students and propose that if closure is confirmed following consultation that they would transition to another school at the end of this academic year. This would prevent disruption to GCSEs and create a positive transition between schools.

Parents and carers can also use an in-year application to seek a place at another school which has space in the same year group.

Yes, though not necessarily at a school of your choice.    

If you would like to discuss your child’s education and their future, please discuss this with the SEND Support Service. You can contact them on 0191 643 8684 or by email, on  sendsupportservice@northtyneside.gov.uk

We would work closely with individual staff and trade unions to support staff at the school to secure alternative employment.  This would happen over an extended time period.  Where staff are not able to secure alternative employment, they would be appropriately compensated for this in line with relevant HR legislation.

An application will be made to the Secretary of State for Education, who has the power to make decisions on the future of the building and the school land.  At this stage, there are no proposals for alternative uses proposed for the building and land.

Yes, if an academy sponsor becomes available, they could apply for ownership of the school.   However, work to date to explore this with existing academies and the Department for Education has not provided any positive solutions and the deficit means this is highly unlikely.

You can change your application up to the closing date on 31 October 2024.

Yes, there could be an impact on other schools in the three-tier system.  

Ideally, the capacity and number of pupils on roll in each year group should be the same from Reception through to Year 11.

This consultation closes at noon on 30 October 2024. If no viable alternatives are put forward, we will move into the statutory consultation period with the outcome announced in January 2025.

In order to stabilise Monkseaton High School, the Council needed to consider as many ideas as possible. One idea explored was moving the three-tier system to a two-tier system of education. This was dismissed following brief discussions as school leaders and governors told us they wanted to maintain the three-tier system. This consultation is not on the tiered system and at this time, the Council has no plans to change the tiered system. However, schools can bring forward their own proposals for change.   

The school building is owned by North Tyneside Learning Trust, not North Tyneside Council. If a school closes and the land is to be used for something other than education in the 10 years after closure, the Secretary of State for Education must give their consent. Any applications for use of the land would be subject to Planning consultation.  

If you child receives travel assistance, please contact the Home to School Transport Team by email,  hometoschooltransport@northtyneside.gov.uk, or by phone on 0191 643 8726, and they will be happy to discuss this with you.

It’s funded by the Department for Education and is not from Council tax. The government decides how much money the Council receives for all schools based on its calculations which are mainly focused on the number of pupils in the Borough. The Council has little control over the allocation of this to individual schools, as since 2021 it has followed the government’s National Funding Formula. Once a school receives their funding allocation, it’s the responsibility of school leaders and Governing Bodies to set and manage the budget for their school. 

If a school is set to spend more money than it receives, it becomes known as a ‘deficit budget’ which the Council must approve. However, it remains the responsibility of the school to return to a balanced position and the Council doesn’t generally receive any extra funding to help schools with a ‘deficit budget’.