Governors at Portishead school asked to take on extra pupils

Governors at a Portishead school are being asked to accommodate an additional 30 students from September in a bid to help ease the growing pressure for class places in the town.

North Somerset Council leader Nigel Ashton held a meeting with the Bishop of Clifton, the Right Reverend Declan Lang, to discuss the possibility of using a classroom at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School for 30 reception pupils.

The move to use the classroom, currently occupied by the school’s after school club, would only be a temporary, one-off solution to the class places issue.

The authority is looking at long- term solutions to provide enough class places for children in the growing town. However reception class students who join St Joseph’s in September 2014 would continue their education at the school.

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Council chiefs are now negotiating with St Joseph’s governing body about the move and have said the authority could provide an additional temporary classroom to house the after-school club.

Funding would also be made available to help pay for additional staff such as a new teacher and classroom assistant.

It is understood the Bishop raised no objections to the move, saying the decision on whether to accommodate the additional pupils should be made by the governors.

School governor Justin Templer said: “This is something the governors are looking at very carefully.”

The school currently has 216 students, around two-thirds of whom are of the Catholic faith.

The Diocese of Clifton has overall control of the school, but its day-to-day running is the responsibility of the governors.

Schools in Portishead have already been expanded since 2010 but statistics have revealed there will be a shortfall of 103 school primary spaces in the town by 2015.

North Somerset Council has already earmarked £400,000 to look at ways of providing additional school places in the town for September 2013.

The move comes at the same time as the Village Quarter Parents Action Group has appointed educational visionary Marcus Orlovsky to drive forward plans to open a free school for up to 420 students by September 2014.

One of the locations being considered is unused office blocks in Newfoundland Way, although other sites across the town are also being investigated.

A proposal for the free school is now being drawn up by Mr Orlovky, his team and parents from the action group, which needs to be submitted by to the Education Funding Agency (EFA) by January 4 for its consideration.

If approved, funding for the free school would have to be sought from the Government and the new school could open by September 2014.

It would be the first school of its kind in North Somerset.

Portishead has a population of around 22,000, expected to rise to 30,000 when developments are complete.