Aldershot to open new primary school as part of £502 million council project
A new primary school is opening in Hampshire tomorrow (September 9th), marking the first part of a council project to create 3,175 additional school places by September 2028
A new school is opening in Aldershot this week, as part of Hampshire County Council's project to add 3,175 school places by September 2028.
Stanhope Primary School is opening tomorrow (September 9th) as the council say they are targeting areas with new development.
It marks the completion of the first phase of Hampshire County Council’s three-year £502 million investment in school buildings.
The programme also includes three new special schools, three school expansions, and 11 projects to enhance provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), adding 114 new places.
Roz Chadd, who is the lead member for children's services at Hampshire County Council, emphasises the authorities duty to provide educational care for people in the area
"The County Council does have a statute of duty to ensure that there are enough school places across Hampshire. So with a new development coming on, we need to make sure that they are those families moving into those new developments have access to a school."
It's one of three different schools opening across Hampshire, with one in Basingstoke and one near Waterlooville
Chadd says that these new schools will form huge parts of the community
"It's nice for those local, those communities where those developments are is to have a local school for their children to go to. It's important for children when they're growing up to have that social aspect, not just that learning aspect of what a school can actually bring."
Chadd also stated that it's really exciting and a privilege to be a part of the process of providing this amount of new school places
"It's it's a real privilege for the county to be part of that process of getting those children into their local schools and being part of the the wider education system that we have in Hampshire.
I've been in the Hampshire cabinet for just over five years now and I can't remember when we had actually 3 new schools coming all together at the same time. It's it's brilliant."