Free school to plug an urgent need for places
A NEW free school has opened its doors to help tackle the urgent need for secondary places.
Laurus Ryecroft launched with a starter group of 154 students yesterday.
The new free school, based on the site of the former Littlemoss High School on Cryer Street in Droylsden, Tameside, has an initial intake of Year 7 pupils aged 11 to 12.
More children will be taken each academic year until it is full.
The government-funded school will eventually also have a sixth form of 300 students.
Headteacher Martin Vevers said the new school would follow the ‘unashamedly academic’ ethos of all Laurus Trust schools and help students to open the door to the future of their choice.
“With outstanding teaching and academic rigour we will provide an environment in which students can really flourish,” he said. “Although we will be unashamedly academic, we realise that to produce truly rounded, capable young people, academic success alone is not enough.
“Our imaginative electives programme and extracurricular options aim to build on students’ strengths and interests.
“We are very excited to bring a Laurus Trust education to the young people of Droylsden.”
Tameside has seen a recent surge in birth rates and the need for new secondary school places is growing year on year.
The council needs to create 458 school places over the next five years to meet demand.
Laurus Ryecroft is the latest addition to the Laurus Trust family. The multi-academy trust, based in Cheadle Hulme, Stockport, is also opening a new secondary school, primary school and nursery in Cheadle Hulme this month, and a muchneeded high school in Didsbury next year. Mr Vevers said the new school would follow the ethos of its sister academy Cheadle Hulme High School, also run by the trust. It is the bestperforming state secondary in Stockport and was deemed ‘outstanding’ in all areas in its past two Ofsted inspections – and this year achieved its best-ever A-level results with 50 per cent of all grades achieved being A* or A. Laurus Ryecroft is one of 53 new free schools opening across the country this September. Martin Vevers, headteacher