King's School set to take primary age pupils
PLANS to create a new junior section at Peterborough's King's School look set to get the go-ahead, paving the way for 60 new pupils to be accepted.
PLANS to create a new junior section at Peterborough's King's School look set to get the go-ahead, paving the way for 60 new pupils to be accepted.Governor's from the King's School in Park, Road, Peterborough, are seeking to establish a Key Stage 2 (KS2) section, for girls and boys aged seven to 11.
Currently, the school, which has 974 pupils, only teaches 11 to 18-year-olds, which means pupils under 11 on cathedral choir scholarships are educated at Peterborough High School (PHS) before moving on to King's for secondary education.
The proposals have initially been approved by Peterborough City Council's Cabinet member for Education, Skills and University, councillor John Holdich.
But the decision is subject to a call in, which means any councillors have the right to question the decision over the next five days.
A meeting has been scheduled to take place on Fridayjan 15 for councillors to discuss their concerns, otherwise the proposal will be automatically approved after the five days.
The move to create the section has been prompted by the fact that Peterborough High School is fee paying school and, while boys can attend as choristers and get funding from Peterborough Cathedral, this does not apply to girls.
Governors at King's School feel that creating the KS2 section and educating all pupils aged seven to 18 in the same school would solve the funding problem.
The proposal is to educate nine choristers in each year group and offer additional primary places to non-choristers, to make a total of 15 pupils in each year group.
In all, the school will introduce a 60 place KS2 section, comprising two mixed aged classes of 30 pupils, which will be implemented on September 1, 2011.
Cllr Holdich said: "New government legislation sets out that all performing schools will need to expand and this proposal helps the council's quest to find more primary school places.
"There is also the issue of equality between girls and boys. At the moment, boys are able to get grants but girls can't.
"It will also open up the opportunity for children from poorer families to become choristers."
The school has recently under gone an 11 million refurbishment and the new pupils, who are set to join the school in September 2011, will study in an old boarding school, also in Park Road, which is being converted into a primary education centre.
A spokesperson from King's School said the proposal provides provision of equality for both girls and boys, from all backgrounds, regardless of the ability to contribute to fees.
The school will be employing specialist staff with KS2 experience for the new section and there will be pastoral support for younger children.
PHS have raised a number of issues against the proposals, including the size and structure of the classes with Years 5 and 6 being taught in one class and concerns that the idea will not improve education.
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Saturday 20 March 2010
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