Salford approves new BSF programme
Salford City Council has approved a £165m plan to rebuild some schools and refurbish others in a protracted effort to launch its Building Schools for the Future programme.
The plans were revised after the Schools Adjudicator decided to not allow the closure of St George's RC High School. The council said closure of St George's would have provided pupils with the option to attend an enlarged, newly built St Ambrose Barlow, or one of the community schools in the area. It would have released extra funding from the sale of the then redundant site.
The revised plans also reduce the number of new builds and focus more on refurbishment.
The plans approved by the council's cabinet include:
- Swinton and Moorside High Schools. Both to close and a new single campus built
- Wentworth High School. Partial new-build plus refurbishment
- St Ambrose Barlow RC High School. Rebuild on a site at Wardley
- St Patrick's RC High School. Rebuild for 900 pupils but no sixth-form
- All Hallows RC High School. Refurbishment and enhancement on existing site
- St George's RC High School. Refurbish at existing capacity
- Oasis Academy Media City UK. New build through the BSF programme but managed independently by Oasis Community Learning and funded by Department for Children Schools and Families
- Walkden High School and Irlam and Cadishead Community High School. Construction has started at Walkden for 1,500 pupils and at Irlam and Cadishead Community High School for 900, 11-16 pupils, with a 150-place sixth-form to open in September 2011
Councillors also agreed to also ask the Catholic schools and the diocese if they want to put forward any further options for Roman Catholic secondary education in the city.
