INFANT CLASS SIZE LEGISLATION

As you will be aware the DfES has ceased to award Infant Class Size Grant. Financial support to enable compliance with the infant class size legislation has been included in the 2003/04 budget share.

In order to allocate grant monies in the past, Norfolk LEA devised a set of criteria that related to the requirement to mix age groups, or not, according to the number of infant pupils attending a school. These criteria were simply a local arrangement that enabled the LEA to substantiate the County’s grant bid to the DfES and to allocate those monies that were awarded.

There appears to be some confusion now relating to the organisation of infant classes. There is no legal requirement to teach Foundation Stage pupils in a different class from those in KS1 nor to separate KS1 and KS2 pupils no matter what size your school is. The organisation of classes is, and always has been, entirely a matter for the headteacher and governing body taking into account the statutory requirement to have a pupil teacher ratio of 30:1 in classes where the majority of pupils are infants. There is also no legal requirement for infant classes to have a full-time learning support assistant.

I hope this clarifies the situation.

Yours sincerely

Marcelle Curtis

Head of Early Years and Childcare Strategy