Grove rebuild dates revealed

The long-awaited rebuild of The Grove School, Balderton, could start as early as next year, it has been revealed.

A meeting on Monday to discuss the Grove’s future was told the Government intended to completely rebuild the school.

The new school is expected to open in 2015 but could be finished by late 2014. It is due to cost £15m.

It will be built for 1,000 pupils, but using a modular design to allow it to expand in line with Newark’s future growth.

In the meantime Nottinghamshire County Council will spend at least £1.5m on short-term improvements to the school’s outdated buildings.

The news has been welcomed by campaigners who have been calling for a rebuild since the cancellation of the Building Schools For The Future (BSF) scheme in 2010.

A member of the Support Our Schools campaign and a Grove parent, Mr Don Melrose, said: “The new school is going to be opened by 2015, which is excellent. That’s as good as we were going to get.”

Last month the Education Secretary, Mr Michael Gove, announced the Grove was included in a national school building programme, but had not confirmed if it would be fully rebuilt or when.

More information has come to light after talks between the county council and the Government’s Education Funding Agency, which is overseeing the programme.

The MP for Newark, Mr Patrick Mercer, is due to meet Mr Gove to discuss the plans further.

Mr John True, a service director in the children, families and cultural services department at County Hall, said the Government was looking at a fast-track approach for the Grove.

He said the agency’s head of capital had already visited.

A template design will be rolled out for schools in the programme, replacing the bespoke plans drawn up under BSF.

The school will be paid for through a private finance initiative, but Mr True said the details were still unclear.

The county council plans to keep existing buildings in working order until the new school opens. Mr True said the new school could open before the old buildings were demolished.

The county council leader, Mrs Kay Cutts, said they would try to get the school’s fabric right for current pupils while they waited for the rebuild. She wanted to see exam results improve at the school.

The Grove is set to become an academy in September with Lincoln College as its sponsor, meaning it will oversee leadership.

The deputy chief executive of the college, Mr Ian Sackree, promised considerable investment in the learning infrastructure at the Grove.

He said the new academy would deliver high-quality education that would contribute to the success and prosperity of Newark.

The Grove head, Mrs Liz Hart, said: “We want to accelerate the progress we have made.

“We want to make students in the town want to come here. Newark needs a better offer for its students.”