Primary school in need of more room finds new home

Thorney Close Primary School is to relocate

A primary school which needs space for more pupils has found a new home after plans for a replacement building were approved.

The new complex for Thorney Close Primary School is planned on the former Sunningdale Primary School site in the Springwell area of Sunderland.

Thorney Close Primary will "remain operational" during the construction period and will relocate once the new school is built, according to planning documents.

The plans were approved unanimously, with only two objections received during a consultation period.

The new school building will have rooms catering for special educational needs

Planning documents say the school site will have 315 places, plus nursery provision, "an additional 39 nursery places and 12 places for two- to three-year-old provision".

There will also be a new football pitch and rooms catering for special educational needs and hearing impairment needs, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Councillor Melanie Thornton, chair of the council's planning and highways committee, said she was "heartened" to see a "parent drop-off facility" incorporated into the design and that "all new schools should have that".

Councillor Michael Dixon added: "I think it’s a great scheme and it’s lovely to see a brand new school in the city."