Proposals for Hampshire County Council to design and build a brand new primary school in Chestnut Avenue, Eastleigh, have been brought a step closer, with the announcement that the University of Winchester Academy Trust will be the new school's Academy Sponsor.
In a letter to both Hampshire County Council and the University, the Department for Education has confirmed that the University of Winchester Academy Trust is the chosen sponsor for the school, which will continue the collaborative working between the County Council and the University. The University Academy Trust is also the sponsor of the Barton Farm Academy primary school in Winchester.
Hampshire County Council's Executive Member for Education, Councillor Peter Edgar, said: "With demand for school places set to rise in Eastleigh, owing to the new housing development in the area of Chestnut Avenue, we have been planning for some time a new primary school to serve the development.
"I am pleased to hear that the University of Winchester Academy Trust has been named as the sponsor, and look forward to continuing our excellent working relationship with University colleagues to make this exciting new school a reality."
Professor Joy Carter, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Winchester and Chair of the University of Winchester Academy Trust, said: "We are delighted to be named as sponsor for the new school and look forward to working in partnership with Hampshire County Council and the local community to bring our distinctive values-driven educational ethos to Eastleigh.
"Our vision is for a school which will offer inspirational learning experiences for all children and nurture a lifelong love of learning and the ambition to achieve their potential."
The new school, for children aged 4 to 11, is expected to cost approximately £6 million to build. It will be designed to encourage community use, with a learning resource area at the heart of the plan.
The new school will serve the new housing development at North Stoneham Park, a 62-hectare site identified in Eastleigh Borough Council's Local Plan 2011-29 as a strategic location for development. The site is being developed by Highwood Group Ltd. The development will include 1100 new homes, accommodation for the elderly, community facilities and landscaped public spaces, as well as the new primary school,
Hampshire County Council will design the new school and manage the building project. The school site is proposed to be handed over to the County Council by spring 2019. The opening of the new school is currently scheduled for September 2020 but the date will ultimately be dependent on the new houses being built and occupied.
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