Financial boost for school buildings

Above: Goostrey Community Primary School will have a new music room

Cheshire East Council is working with schools and children centres on capital programmes aimed at improving the quality of buildings.

Schools in Cheshire East will benefit from a £1m boost aimed at improving the environments in which children in the borough are educated.

Using a Department for Education capital grant allocation, maintained schools can bid for funding.

In previous successful schemes, schools have created new learning spaces, improved accessibility for disabled learners and provided new specialist surroundings to enhance the curriculum.

The grant funding can also be used for repairs to existing defects and providing ongoing maintenance.

Councillor George Hayes, cabinet member for children and families said: “We all want the best learning environments for our children to achieve and develop to their full potential and this scheme illustrates how best to maximise the capital resources available to achieve that.

“I look forward to visiting schools after the summer break to see these new resources in place and to see learners and staff benefiting from this investment.

“This council is fully committed to providing sufficient school places and a variety of projects are underway.

“The future of school improvement has to be through highly effective collaboration and this programme illustrates how school leaders, governors and local authority teams can successfully combine their skills and resources to really make a difference for young people.’’

Lyndsey Atkins, headteacher at Goostrey Community Primary School, said: “We are delighted to be having a music room built. It will enable our music specialists to facilitate greater learning opportunities, allowing pupils to develop their talents and skills in a dedicated space.  We are looking forward to using it next term and seeing the many benefits it will undoubtedly bring.”