Reading 1,200-pupil secondary school approved on driving range site

The school will be built on a former driving range on Richfield Avenue

A 1,200-pupil secondary school will be built on a former driving range site, council planners have said.

Reading Borough Council approved the proposal to build The River Academy on land on Richfield Avenue.

The school, for years 11 to 16, will be built near the site of the approved Rivermead Leisure Complex and Gym.

Councillors agreed during the planning meeting that the school was "needed" in the area.

The school's capacity could increase to 1,500, planners said.

Festival camping

It will be built on land to the west of the main site for Reading Festival and operators Maiden Erlegh Trust confirmed the school would make playing fields available for camping during the festival.

The school will also have a dedicated self-contained Special Educational Needs and Disability unit as well as links to Rivermead Leisure Complex, which is due to be ready in 2023.

Councillor Jo Lovelock, the planning committee's chair, said this was "an important, significant report in our town".

The land was previously used by Leaderboard Golf Centre as well as a laser clay shooting range.

Councillor Karen Rowland said plans to use gas burners to heat the school were concerning "in the middle of a climate crisis".

There is no completion date for the school to be built yet, but plans are expected to be implemented within three years.