ITEM CMDSI3
CABINET MEMBER FOR SCHOOLS IMPROVEMENT – 4 DECEMBER 2007
EXPANSION OF HANWELL FIELDS COMMUNITY SCHOOL, BANBURY
Report by Director for Children, Young People & Families
Introduction
1. Hanwell Fields Community School was opened in 2003 as a new 8 classroom school with nursery facilities to serve this new housing development to the north of Banbury. The school is currently oversubscribed from within its own catchment area and additional accommodation is required. There is the potential for further expansion with additional housing planned within the catchment area.
Context
2. The school was originally built with 8 classrooms including foundation stage to reflect the demand from the houses and originally opened with a planned admission number of 35, with an original number on opening of 30. It is true to say that this was potentially difficult for class organisation. Since opening the school has used one of the classrooms as a community room and until recently one as a special needs room. The current number on roll is shown below:
N=Nursery R=Reception i.e Foundation stage
3. Although full the school has only recently been operating as a full 1 form of entry i.e one class group of 30 entering the school each year. In September 2006 of the 32 admitted 30 were from the school’s catchment area and 2 were admitted on appeal from outside the schools catchment area. There are 14 children on the waiting list of which 4 are catchment. The nursery is full and there are currently 42 children with the school as first preference for next year with more applications anticipated before the closing date of 23rd November.
4. The total number of houses in the Hanwell Fields development is now over a thousand houses with the final phase of houses nearing completion.
Proposal
5. The proposal is to increase the school capacity to 1½ forms of entry by providing a new ‘nursery’ space releasing the existing nursery as a Foundation stage classroom. There will also be 2 additional classrooms, a community classroom, 2 rooms for individual or small groups of pupils, additional toilets and storage facilities, increased size of assembly hall space and associated storage, a studio-initially to be used as a classroom, increased library space and minor changes to the external covered area and hard play provision. This will increase the capacity of the school by 90. This additional none classroom space will be sufficient should the school need to increase further to 2 forms of entry if further housing developments in the catchment area are given permission. This would require an additional 4 classrooms at some point in the future but the school has been designed to expand to take these if necessary.
6. The nearest school is Hardwick Primary School which has been taking some of the Hanwell Fields catchment children that are unable to get a place at that school. This school will shortly have a major modernisation scheme taking place but this will not affect the capacity significantly. The school is currently fills to its admission number.
Statutory Process
7. There is a requirement where there is a proposed increase in the capacity of a school (over a 5 year period) by more than 25% or 200 places (whichever is the lower) and at least 30 places that a statutory process is required involving consultation and the publication of notices as a ‘Prescribed Alteration’.
8. It is proposed that a short consultation take place with the school, parents and other local stakeholders until 11th January when, subject to no objections a statutory notice will be produced requiring a decision by at the 4 March meeting.
Financial and Staff Implications
9. The financial implications of the report are linked to the capital works that will be carried out should the proposals be approved and these will be the subject of a separate project approval.
RECOMMENDATION
10. The Cabinet Member for Schools Improvement is RECOMMENDED
to approve informal consultation and should there be no objections the
publication of statutory notices for Hanwell Fields School, Banbury
JANET TOMLINSON Director for Children, Young People & Families
Contact Officer: Michael Mill, Strategic Manager (Property & Assets) Tel: (01865) 816458
Background Papers: Nil
December 2007
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