Hull City Council Responds To Rising Demand For Secondary School

Hull City Council is increasing the capacity of three schools in the city to respond to the rising demand in secondary school places.

 

It is projected that over the next five years there will be an increase in demand for 1,000 secondary school places in the west of Hull.

St Mary’s College, Kelvin Hall School and the Boulevard Academy will all have their capacities increased as part of a £19.84m investment by the Council under the citywide Schools Capital Programme.

Councillor Peter Clark, the portfolio holder for learning, skills and safeguarding children, said: “It is vital that we respond to the rising demand in secondary school places to ensure that we can continue to give our children the best education possible.

“We want to ensure that as many children as possible have access to their preferred schools, and avoid children being forced to travel further to receive an education.

“This investment will not only respond to the increasing demand for school places, but it will also improve the schools’ facilities and allow them to provide more specialist SEN provision.”

In March last year, Cabinet gave the approval to undertake works to a number of secondary schools across Hull to address the issue of rising demand in school places.

During the last year, Hull City Council has worked with schools to identify the best way to increase capacity in the west of the city. With its partner, Esteem, the Council is working through the procurement process and this decision enables approval of the Stage 1 submissions which is a milestone achieved in the contractual close process.

St Mary’s College will benefit from an extension and remodelling works. In order to meet current demand and projected increases in pupil places, the Council proposes to expand St Mary’s College to provide accommodation for a further 300 pupils with a year on year increase of 60 pupils in Year 7 commencing from September 2019.

A new two-storey teaching block will be constructed to provide  General classrooms, ICT classrooms and a Year Group office.

The Boulevard Academy will also receive an extension and remodelling works. The Council proposes to increase the capacity of the school by a further 300 places, with a year on year increase of 60 pupils in Year 7 commencing from September 2019

The proposed remodelling of the existing areas will provide additional classrooms and dining space ready for September 2019 to provide enough space for the additional 60 pupils.

The new extension will provide a teaching block with general classrooms, ICT classrooms, general science laboratories, music practice/group rooms, small group rooms and office and meeting rooms.

An additional 250 places will be made available at Kelvin Hall with a two-storey extension.  There will be a year on year increase of 50 pupils in Year 7 commencing from September 2019, which will include an additional Autistic Spectrum Disorder Resource Base for 15 pupils.

The project will provide additional dining space, SEN student support classrooms, one-to-one rooms, group/ meeting rooms. In addition to general teaching classrooms, ICT spaces, technology and break out areas which will be accommodated in an infill of the existing second-floor terrace.

Hull City Council is working with another secondary school with the intention of increasing its capacity to meet the remaining demand for school places over the next five years.

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