Gearies Primary School expansion proposals ‘due to growing population’
Poet Valarie Bloom talking to pupils at Gearies Primary School in Gants Hill - Credit: Archant
Plans to expand a primary school are set to be discussed at a council meeting tonight.
The proposals would see an extra 210 school places at Gearies Primary School, Waremead Road, Gants Hill.
The school could be extended by 30 additional places in each year group from September 2017, should plans go ahead after a consultation.
Cllr Elaine Norman, cabinet member for children and young people, said: “Redbridge has some of the best performing schools in the country.
“We are incredibly proud of this, but obviously this achievement comes with extra pressure as more and more parents want their children to be educated in Redbridge.
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“We also have a growing population and sensible measures like these are vital to ensuring that we can continue to offer our high levels of education to the young people in the borough.”
A consultation on the proposals will take place between June 20 and July 18 if the children and young people service committee agrees to a report on the plans at tonight’s meeting.
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The outcome of the consultation will then be reported to cabinet, which would decide whether to proceed.
A Redbridge Council spokesman said in addition to the expansion proposals, the school had already agreed to accept a temporary reception class of 30 pupils for September this year.
The plans come after a motion to create 100 primary school places in South Woodford was rejected at the last full council meeting.
The recommendation came after Churchfields School, Churchfields, and nearby Oakdale School, Oakdale Road, were deemed unsuitable for expansion.
Church End ward’s Cllr Tom McLaren, who backed the motion, said: “It’s hard to be disappointed about more school places but it’s not in our area.
“Our position is that we need more places in Church End and in Woodford generally.”
