AND like buses, after the announcement that William Edwards has been given permission to build a new school, comes the news that two more senior schools have been approved.
On the list of 131 new schools announced by the government today (Wednesday) in the country are:
Thameside Secondary School
Treetops Special Free School
YT understands that Thameside will be built on the site of the Thameside Primary on Manor Road in Grays. The Thameside Primary is part of the St Clere’s Co-Operative Academy Trust.
Education insiders have speculated that the school will expand from the current premises as opposed to moving to new grounds.
A number of questions remain including whether the school will be selective or not?
It will also pose a question as to where all the money is coming from, the staff and the pupils. There may also be a question as to what are the implications for schools such as Hathaway Academy and, further afield, Hassenbrook Academy and Ormiston Park Academy.
More reactions to follow.
Shows the usual bad planning from Thurrock Council. The old Torells school with 1200 pupils was just across the road from the new proposed Orsett Heath Academy also to be 1200 pupils. Torells was merged with the smaller St Chads and became the Gateway Academy which was around 900 pupils. Which left pupils from Little Thurrock and Chadwell traveling to either the Stanford schools or trying to get into William Edwards with no chance of the Gateway. Now they have to get the land to create a new school something which was there before. I know some of the old Torells land has become Treetops but half of the old Torells site including the Boys sports filled remain empty. What a waste.