Liverpool: Parents 'let down' as secondary school opening delayed

The school should have opened in September

Pupils who applied for places at a new secondary school have been told it will not be open by September because it does not have planning permission.

Applications for the Kings Leadership Academy Wavertree, Liverpool, were made in October for the school's first term.

However a letter to parents said unforeseen delays in obtaining planning permission meant it could not open yet.

A spokesperson for Liverpool City Council said it understood the news would be "disappointing" for students.

The new school was intended to relieve some of the pressure on over-subscribed schools in Liverpool.

It is unclear why the school has yet to obtain planning permission.

The parents' letter, seen by the BBC, said that "the Secretary of State is not able to sign a funding agreement for the school. This is due to unforeseen delays in in obtaining the necessary planning permissions".

The school site is on a business park in an office block which would need a change of use approval - it is understood the Department for Education (DfE) is the applicant, having bought the site in 2023.

Secondary school places were allocated to year 6 pupils in Liverpool on 1 March.

Mother-of-two Hannah Louise, whose son has special educational needs, researched her choice and found a school close to home which suited all his needs.

She said Kings Leadership Academy Wavertree was "a match made in heaven".

"I feel completely let down. It is soul destroying," she added.

Hannah Louise says she feels completely let down

Her son has been offered a place at a school nearly three miles away

The DfE said "A provisional opening date has not yet been agreed for Kings Leadership Academy Wavertree but the department continues to work closely with the local authority and trusts to progress this project.

"Any offers of pupil places for Kings Leadership Academy Wavertree are conditional, and dependent on a Funding Agreement being entered into with the Secretary of State."

School principal Benjamin Barker said: "Due to unforeseen delays in securing the planning permissions to convert the site into a school, the Department for Education (DfE) has been unable to complete the funding agreement for King's Wavertree, so it has taken the decision to delay our planned opening until September 2025."

"This removes any uncertainty for parents and children who received a firm offer at another school on National Offer Day."

It is not known how many families are affected, but the school was due to take a cohort of 180 pupils in September and 97 children had Kings Leadership Academy Wavertree on their short list.

A spokeswoman for Liverpool City Council said: "We know that this will be disappointing to parents, carers and, most importantly, the young people who had hoped to start their secondary school careers at King's Leadership Academy Wavertree. We will continue to support the Department for Education and The Great Schools Trust on this project."

Paula Barker said the school's deferred opening was hugely disappointing

Paula Barker, Labour MP for Liverpool Wavertree said the outcome for parents was "hugely disappointing".

She raised concerns with the council and Secretary of State for Education when she was informed of potential problems last month.

The MP added she was trying to find out how this situation happened and had "made it clear to both the local authority and the Academy Trust that extra support must be provided to the parents and children impacted by the decision".

"It is further disappointing that such a situation occurs when there is already huge pressure on school places which the opening of Kings Leadership in Wavertree was meant to help address."