42 county schools get £4.7m from developers for growth and repairs
MILLIONS of pounds from housing developers is being used to fund a vast number of school expansions across Derbyshire, including the county’s largest secondary.
More than £4.7m is being used to pay for nine school expansions across Derbyshire. Each time a developer has plans approved for medium and large homes schemes, they are asked to provide money to offset the impact their project will have on the area.
Some areas of the county, particularly south of Derby, are the source of many developments which see money pooled for larger school expansion projects. Some £12 m has been gathered for expansions at John Port School, for example. It is already Derbyshire’s largest secondary school and it plans to grow to take in 2,500 students through a number of extensions.
The first will be £1.7 million for a two-storey sixth-form extension, from money pooled from seven schemes.
Derbyshire County Council, which has gathered the funds from housing developers, said it must grant the funds to John Port so as not to “fail in its statutory duty to supply sufficient school places” with “no other secondary and post-16 places available in the area”.
A further £3m has been directed to another eight Derbyshire schools, sourced from 18 approved homes schemes:
William Allitt in Newhall is getting £485,000 towards three classrooms;
Eureka Primary in Midway, Swadlincote, is getting £303,000 towards classrooms;
Etwall Primary is getting £46,000 towards a two-classroom extension;
Hallam Fields Juniors in Ilkeston is getting £528,000 (classrooms);
Clowne Infants will be getting £9,000 towards improving facilities;
Somercotes Infants will be getting £12,000 towards improving facilities
Tibshelf Community School will be getting £834,000 (classrooms);
Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar in Ashbourne will be getting £289,000 towards plans for six new classrooms;
The county council is also dispersing nearly £15m in Government grants to dozens of schools for extensions and repairs. This includes:
Anthony Gell, Wirksworth: £744,000 to replacement of flat roof, coverings and insulation;
Bamford Primary £181,000 towards replacement of the pitched roof;
Belmont Primary (foundation site), Swadlincote: £157,000 towards new heating pipework and radiators;
Belper Long Row Primary £70,000 towards a new boiler and heating;
Belper School £870,000 towards replacement flat roof and insulation;
Birkhill Infants, Eckington, £12,000 towards kitchen ventilation works;
Breadsall Primary £967,000 towards a new school;
Brockwell Juniors £17,000 towards a new entrance;
Buxton Community £1.15 million towards new window and doors;
Cavendish Junior £14,000 towards a flat roof
Clowne Juniors £181,100 towards rewiring
Coton-in-the-Elms Primary £120,750 towards replacement of drains and playground resurfacing;
Crich Juniors £162,000 towards a new boiler and heating;
Croft Community Infants £72,500 towards the replacement of the pitched roof coverings and an insulation project;
Darley Dale Primary £9,000 towards kitchen ventilation works;
Etwall Primary £17,100 towards two new classrooms;
Findern Community Primary £300,000 towards new sewage plant;
Hady Primary, Chesterfield £30,000 towards a drainage scheme;
Herbert Strutt Primary, Belper, £180,000 towards a heat source pump and a boiler replacement;
Highfields, Matlock £130,000 towards an all-weather sports pitch;
Hunloke Park Primary, Wingerworth £968,000 towards a new threeclassroom block;
Killamarsh Infants £175,000 towards a new roof;
Killamarsh Juniors £72,500 towards a heating system renewal;
Linton Primary £138,000 towards a rewire;
New Mills School £12,000 towards kitchen ventilation works;
Newtown Primary, New Mills £45,000 towards an electricity supply upgrade;
Northfield Juniors, Dronfield £148,500 towards the replacement of flat-roof coverings;
Parklands Infant and Nursery, Long Eaton £648,000 towards a replacement of flat-roof, rooflights and an insulation project;
Parkside Community, Chesterfield £285,000 towards replacement of the pitched roof and insulation;
Pilsley Primary £13,000 towards plant room works;
Ripley Infants £179,400 towards an electrical rewire;
Spire Juniors, Chesterfield £65,000 towards heating pipework renewal;
William Levick Primary, Dronfield Woodhouse £50,000 towards rewiring.