Demand for secondary places will increase

They range from building three new schools to building just one and expanding most existing secondary schools.

The council says it will have a shortfall of 27.78 forms of entry by 2026 due to the rising primary school population that will feed into the secondary sector and an estimated 22,000 new homes expected to be built in the borough.

To start the process of identifying a solution, the council is to launch a consultation in the autumn with residents, politicians, parents, schools, transport providers, diocesan authorities and others.

It has identified four possible options.

It says no potential sites for new schools have been formally identified or agreed, but the intention is for the consultation results be taken into account.

Assessment will take place this summer to identify potential sites, with a particular focus on East Swindon.

Cabinet has also agreed to ask Swindon’s MPs, Justin Tomlinson and Robert Buckland, to lobby the Government for more funding for Swindon’s secondary schools, as it says the total funding required will inevitably exceed the Department For Education basic needs capital grant and potential developer contributions.

Coun Fionuala Foley, the cabinet member for children services, said: “We have built a number of new primary schools so the knock-on effect is increasing demand in our secondary schools.

“This is just to start a wide consultation, talking with everyone about options going forward.

“We will be speaking to the two MPs to ask the right Government ministers on our behalf to look at funding, because there’s going to be a massive funding impact.”

The four options range from building three new schools, and expanding Dorcan, at an estimated cost of £77m, through to a £52.75m phased approach involving the construction of a new school in the east, the expansion of four existing schools, and transporting children to use surplus spaces at three.

To help deal with the potential capital costs, the council is considering inviting a free school provider to Swindon.

A free school is an all-ability state-funded school set up in response to parental demand, and receives capital funding from Government for its construction, over and above the normal cash given to councils.

The council is also considering partly addressing the demand by using spare capacity in schools outside of some pupils’ local area, where a shortage has been identified.

But this could lead to extra home-to-school transport costs, and would also reduce the overall Government grant for Swindon’s school running costs if pupils attended schools outside of the borough, such as Royal Wootton Bassett.

Coun Jim Grant, the Labour group leader, urged the council to start now to try to locate a site in North Swindon, as the first new places will be needed in September 2018, after taking into account the pupils expected to be sent out-of-borough.

He said: “That’s only five years and given how long it’s taken to get a school in Tadpole Farm off the ground, and that’s only a primary school, the earlier we can identify a site the better.”

Coun Stan Pajak, the Lib Dem group leader, said: “It’s a pity we cannot say what the various sites will be because everyone will be asking the same question: where will the new school be located?”

THE OPTIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION

Option A:
Build three new schools and expand two – £77m and 28 new forms of entry

• New school in East Swindon. Expand Dorcan and use its surplus places to manage pupils in the short to medium term. Also expand Ridgeway.
• New school in North Swindon. St Luke’s, Groundwell Park and Ride and a new school next to Nova Hreod are all potential options, although outside the identified demand in the Redhouse, Oakhurst and Haydon End.
• New school in central and South Swindon. The council says Wichelstowe and Oakfield are not perfect in terms of proximity to demand, but are likely to be the most suitable options.

Option B:
Build two new schools, expand three and use surplus places in two – £68m and 24 new forms of entry

• New schools at East Swindon and central and South Swindon, as in option A.
• Expand provision at Isambard and/or Nova Hreod, and use surplus places at Swindon Academy and Highworth Warneford to meet demand in North Swindon. Swindon Council says Isambard is better positioned to meet projected demand but Nova Hreod has more land to achieve it.
• Further expansions would be required to manage temporary peaks and early phases at Wichelstowe and the early phases in East Swindon.

Option C:
Build one school, expand six, use surplus places in two – £59m and 20 new forms of entry

• New school in East Swindon, as in option A.
• Expand seven of Swindon’s 11 existing secondary schools and transport children from areas of pressure to wherever school places are available.
• Expand Isambard and Nova Hreod, and use surplus at Swindon Academy and Highworth Warneford to meet demand in North Swindon.
• Expand Ridgeway, Churchfields and St Joseph’s to meet pressure from the town centre, Old Town and Wichelstowe. In the longer term, expand Dorcan and use any potential surplus. Swindon Council says this option would remove all surplus places, increasing risk and reducing pupil choice.

Option D
Build one school, expand five, use surplus at two – £52.75m – 18 new forms of entry

• New school in East Swindon, as in option A.
• Similar to option C without expanding Isambard and Nova Hreod, the PFI schools. Instead, use existing surplus at Swindon Academy and Highworth Warneford.
• When demand exceeds this supply, transport pupils to use surplus at Dorcan, and when this surplus is removed, expand Dorcan, which would manage short-term peak demand from North Swindon and early pressure from East Swindon, and longer term peak pressures from central and Wichelstowe.
• Expand Ridgeway, Churchfields and St Joseph’s to meet demand in central and South Swindon. Also expand Lydiard. Swindon Council says this option would be risky for the same reasons as option C.