Redbridge Council may cut the number of primary school places available in future years to deal with predictions of a “significant drop” in pupils. 

Population modelling by the Greater London Authority suggests that by 2030/31 there will be 720 unfilled places at schools across the borough, equivalent to 24 empty classes. 

To cope with the loss of funding that having fewer pupils would bring, the council is now considering various options for a “managed reduction”. 

These include reducing the number of places available at the 44 primary schools it is responsible for or “federating” schools to share resources. 

In a cabinet meeting before Christmas, council leader Jas Athwal hit out at “very, very serious misinformation” on social media about which schools may lose places, insisting that no decisions on admissions have been made yet. 

Cllr Athwal said Redbridge Council needs to “tackle head-on” the drop in funding to “ensure the best outcomes” for children. 

He added: “We are responsible for ensuring the educational outcomes for young people in the borough and we take that very seriously. 

“The evidence set out in the report is very, very clear: if we were to take no action whatsoever, we would be failing in that obligation. 

“It is really important to note that, should any consultation go forward with a school, it will need to be brought back to cabinet for consideration.” 

The fall in pupil numbers is thought to be linked to issues including a fall in birth rate, rising property prices, Brexit and fewer families moving to Redbridge. 

On primary national offer day in April last year, there were 411 vacancies out of 4,470 places available in reception classes. 

A report before cabinet shows that only the western area of the borough’s three primary school “planning areas” has the same number of pupils as places available. 

The north and centre, known as “planning area two”, already has a 10 per cent surplus of school places and is expected to have 280 fewer pupils by 2030. 

The south and east, known as “planning area three”, also has a surplus of 10pc and is expected to have 172 fewer pupils. 

The cabinet report said: “It is considered advisable to have some surplus places in an area to allow for children arriving mid-year. 

“However, when individual schools have a high number of surplus places, it can cause financial problems both in the short and long term, given the need to plan for staffing and maintenance of unused space.” 

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The report also warns that an alternative to “managed reduction” would be to allow pupil numbers to fall “unevenly across the borough” and then close schools that are no longer “educationally or financially viable”. 

Options for coping with the fall in pupil numbers include capping admissions by year group, reducing overall admissions numbers or changing the use of some school buildings. 

They also include “federating” schools to pool resources or “amalgamating” schools, which could eventually lead to closures.