New schools for a new school year

With a focus on rebuilding and refurbishing the schools in most urgent need of repair, the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) was introduced in August 2011 to replace Labour’s Building Schools for the Future Programme.
    
In May 2012, the first batch of 261 schools from across the country were confirmed as eligible for the funding and in May 2014, the government announced plans for phase two of the programme worth £2 billion. As of January 2015, 16 schools from the first phase were open and operating, while 55 remained under construction, and the remaining schools fully involved in planning and development stages. In February 2015, the government confirmed the 277 schools which would receive a share of the second-round of funding from the Priority School Building Programme.
    
This September, more than 11,500 pupils returned to school for their first term in new buildings, with 22 buildings re-opening as a result of £160 million of construction work from the programme. This brings the total number to have been re-opened through the first phase of PSBP to 49.

Run down to built up
One such school of the programme that opened its new doors in September was Richard Lee Primary School in Coventry. The school was once publicised as the school most in need of repair in England, due to previously being plagued by frequent leaks and flooding.
    
However, the school is able to begin the new term in a state-of-the-art building thanks to its £7 million rebuild. As a result of the rebuild, the school now boasts a large, multi-use hall, bright new classrooms and a state-of-the-art music and drama studio.
  
Richard Lee Primary School head teacher Carol Brammer said: “Our long awaited new school building gives us a great place for our children to learn and for teachers to teach. Our facilities are fit for purpose, with fantastic learning spaces giving access to new technologies, a music and drama studio, bright and airy classrooms with shared learning zones and a large multi-use hall.

“This hard-fought-for new school building lifts the spirits and aspirations of our whole community, helping our children to be the best they can be.”
    
Richard Lee is one of six Coventry based schools being rebuilt under the programme. There are three other primary schools, one secondary school and one special needs secondary school. Richard Lee is the final school to be successfully handed over.

New classrooms
Elsewhere, Moorgate Primary Academy became the first of eight schools to reopen in the West Midlands, following its £3.6 million construction works. The school’s old buildings have been replaced with a two-storey building with bright new classrooms and modern features, including an energy-efficient automatic ventilation system. A dance studio is also included, which will be made available to the public.

Jonathan Williams, head teacher of Moorgate Primary Academy, said: “We are delighted with our new building, which is a modern 21st century facility, and different in every way from our old Victorian building.
    
“We now have all sorts of mod cons, from an automatic mechanical ventilation system to a school bell beeper system, and the children were able to see the construction work from the playground of the old school, which was very exciting and involving for them. Since we moved into the new building, everyone - the pupils, the staff and the parents - have just been walking a bit taller. We are all extremely proud.”

Schools Minister Lord Nash said: “Through the priority school building programme we are investing in school buildings across the country to transform the learning environment for tens of thousands of pupils and their teachers while delivering value for money for the taxpayer.
    
“The reopening of Moorgate Primary Academy marks a key milestone for the programme in the West Midlands, and these new school buildings will provide modern, fit-for-purpose facilities for pupils and staff for many years to come.”
    
In Derby, Reigate Park Primary has seen its old buildings replaced with a two-storey building of insulated timber with modern heating, lighting and ventilation systems to ensure excellent energy efficiency.
    
Infants and juniors at Reigate Park Primary will all be taught under one roof, rather than in the two separate buildings used previously. The new building also includes a dedicated, modern unit for deaf children. Thanks to the £3.8 million investment from the PSBP, pupils at the Mackworth school are enjoying a new canteen and will be able to eat hot meals cooked on site for the first time in years.
    
Peter Hallsworth, head teacher of Reigate Park Primary School, said: “The governors, pupils, parents and staff are extremely grateful for the fantastic new learning environment that we are now fortunate to have. We are sure that this new environment will support our children in their learning and our teachers in their teaching.”

Not all good news
Thanks to the programme, £15.3 million has been spent completely renovating the Ian Ramsey CoE Academy school site in Stockton-on-Tees, ensuring generations of pupils will have access to the best possible facilities for learning. The 1,200-place academy is also the first secondary school opened under the programme.
    
Executive head teacher Gill Booth said: “This new building offers our young people a chance to flourish and learn within the best facilities that the 21st century can offer.”
    
However, according to the local newspaper, The Gazette, Ian Ramsey CoE Academy school is still suffering from problems since its refurbishment, including ‘lack of space’ in science labs and ‘inadequate’ locker numbers. A report seen by The Gazette from Stockton Council’s Education Admissions Appeal Panel, outlines concerns over ‘lack of space’ within the school - including dining facilities that can only accommodate 250 pupils when there are more than 1,000 per day requiring them.
    
There have also been warnings that additional pupils could take a further toll on resources. The new Fairfield Road school base has come under criticism from parents who launched an appeal through Stockton Council after their children were denied places.
    
Peter Snowden, the school’s deputy head teacher, who had previously given evidence to the appeals panel, explained why the admission of additional children could ‘prejudice the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources at the school’.

Further information
www.gov.uk