Written question asked by Priti Patel (Conservative) on Tuesday, 23 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 25 June 2026. It was answered by Josh MacAlister (Labour) on Tuesday, 30 June 2026 on behalf of the Department for Education.

Free Schools: Witham

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (i) methodology and (ii) timeframes of (a) housing growth and (b) pupil number growth forecasts did she use when deciding to not to proceed with funding for the proposed Lodge Farm Primary School in Witham.

Answer: Mainstream Free School projects were evaluated against consistent criteria on the need for places, value for money, and whether they would provide a distinctive or innovative education offer or risk negatively impacting other local schools. As part of the decision-making process, the department carefully assessed all available evidence, with a particular focus on the evidence of need for additional school places within the relevant planning areas, factoring in housing growth. To inform the decision we used the latest School Capacity survey data and took account of the local authority's longer-term projections. For Lodge Farm Primary and Nursery, the review found that current evidence does not show sufficient need for a new school.

Secondary information