GREAT progress is being made in the development of Okehampton’s new primary school as the first head of school has been appointed and construction work has begun on the new building.

As sponsor of the new St James’ Church of England Primary School, the Diocese of Exeter has been working at pace to put the necessary infrastructure in place to satisfy the rigorous requirements of the Department for Education and the Regional Schools Commissioner, so that the school can welcome its first reception cohort in September. ?

The Diocese has announced that the funding agreement has now been signed and already, the school will welcome more than ten reception pupils to start in September.

St James’ has announced the appointment of its head of school, Suzie Stevens. Suzie will work closely with executive head Hazel Fox to establish the school.

Commenting on her appointment, Suzie said: ‘This is such an exciting opportunity, not just for me, but for our pupils and families and the wider community. Together, we will build a school in which all children are recognised for their unique talents and encouraged and supported to flourish academically, socially and emotionally.

‘We will be enriching our curriculum with plenty of exciting opportunities for outdoor learning and I can’t wait to get my wellies on for lots of adventures with the children!’

The new school will be operated by the newly established St James’ Academy Trust which will work in close partnership with Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust to benefit from local educational and leadership expertise.

Initially, St James’ will be based in the grounds of Okehampton Primary School, operating from the self-contained Great Links Tor building until the new site is ready.

While Okehampton Primary will welcome St James’ pupils to big school events (such as PTFA fairs and Christmas celebrations), the new school will operate independently. This will enable it to develop its own unique character and ethos and will minimise disruption to the children when it moves to its brand-new building in early 2019.

Diocesean director of education, John Searson said: ‘Our partnership with Okehampton Primary School will enable St James’ to get off to a flying start and we would like to offer our sincere thanks and express our appreciation to the governors and staff of Okehampton Primary for all their support. I look forward to welcoming our first pupils in September.’

Construction work has just begun on the new primary school site, which is located to the north of Crediton Road and is being built on behalf of Devon County Council. The school will create 420 primary and nursery places, primarily serving the new housing development being built to the east of Okehampton.

Building work at the primary school is scheduled to be completed in late 2018. 

Nigel Whelan, area director at developer Morgan Sindall, said: ‘We’re so pleased to have been appointed to deliver the new St James’ Church of England Primary School, which will help to alleviate the growing demand for primary school places in Okehampton.

‘The new school will be a fantastic addition to the town, ensuring that every child is given the best possible education and learning experience.

‘We’re looking forward to working closely with Devon County Council and the wider community to ensure that the new school is perfectly aligned with their vision for a highly distinctive and innovative teaching environment to serve future generations.’

Devon County Council has provided the land for the new school and is forward funding the building costs. Devon County Council’s cabinet member for schools, Cllr James McInnes, said: ‘A new school is urgently needed for the fast-growing town of Okehampton. The existing primary school in Okehampton is at capacity and our forecasts show increasing numbers of pupils over the next few years.

‘We are delighted to be working in partnership with the Church of England on this much-needed new facility for the town.’

NPS project manager, Claire Walkey, said: ‘NPS are delighted to be involved in this much anticipated project which will provide an exciting purpose-built environment for high quality teaching and learning, both internally and externally. A fantastic effort by all in achieving this significant construction milestone.’

The statutory consultation for the new school attracted over 100 responses and the Diocese stated that they indicated strong support for the proposals. The full report and recommendations are available to view on the school website.

While the formal consultation closed in March, there will be plenty of further opportunities to feedback as St James’ will be running a series of ‘Keeping in Touch’ events to keep the community updated about progress and to invite comments.

Parents and carers who wish to apply for a reception place at St James in September 2018 can still do so and are advised to contact the Devon County Council admissions team for more information.