School expansion plans to create 300 extra places

Park Academy in Sheffield is one of the schools planning to expand its pupil numbers

Two secondary schools in Sheffield are to expand to provide 300 more places for pupils.

Work to create the additional places at Sheffield Springs Academy and Sheffield Park Academy will be funded through a grant of nearly £10m from the Department for Education (DfE).

Meanwhile, Forge Valley School, in Stannington, is planning a temporary expansion and two nurseries in the city will also be helped to create additional places

The spending plans were approved at a meeting of the Sheffield City Council's finance and performance policy committee on Monday.

Sheffield Springs Academy, in Hurlfield Road, will receive £2,414,100 from the DfE to create an additional 30 pupil places in each of its five year groups.

The money will be spent on expanding the main entrance and dining hall, reconfiguring the second floor and converting one classroom into a science room.

The move has been prompted by forecast long-term population growth in the east of the city, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Sheffield Park Academy in Beaumont Road North, will receive £7,104,600 to also provide 30 more places in each year.

As well as extensions and alterations to classrooms, the school will expand the dining hall, refurbish the library and make changes to toilets.

Forge Valley School in Wood Lane, Stannington will receive £87,600 to temporarily expand and see whether it is feasible to provide more pupil places long-term.

Elsewhere, Nether Green Infant School, in Stumperlowe Park Road, and Royd Nursery and Infant School in Carr Road, Deepcar, will also receive funding to support their expansion plans.

Five Rivers Multi Academy Trust is also expanding its alternative provision for children who are not in mainstream schools, with a £277,200 grant from the DfE.

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