School opens up to pupils again
A Sunderland school has welcomed back pupils and staff after plans were approved for temporary school buildings on site.
Burnside Academy’s main school building has been temporarily closed since March, following structural settlement linked to pumping and drainage works.
Theeducationofpupilshas continuedoffsiteacrosstheInspirefamilyofacademies,with staff and pupils travelling together daily by coach to access their temporary setting.
Alongside principal contractor Meldrum Construction Services and other key partners,contractorsrecently erected a temporary school on the playing fields to the rear of themainprimaryschoolbuilding in Houghton.
Planning permission for the temporary school facility was granted by Sunderland City Council’s planning department.
This included portable buildings arranged in a cluster, away from the main school building, offering three temporary classrooms, a kitchen pod and an administration base and staff area.
Education leaders said the plans would enable necessary repair works to take place to the main school site while day-to-day education continues safely and uninterrupted in the temporary facility.
LeonaKelly,theheadteacher of Burnside Academy, welcomed the return of staff and pupils this week as the temporary buildings officially opened.
In a statement she said: “Whilst this has been a challenging period for everyone connected with the school, we have worked together, as a team, to ensure pupils continue to receive a high-quality education.
“I am immensely proud of the staff team and the pupils
who have shown determinationandresiliencethroughout this period.
“I would also like to thank residents of the wider school community who have been supportive and accommodating throughout the construction process.
“We officially opened the temporary school site to pupils on November 2.
“Onbehalfofthestaffteam, the Board of Trustees and Local Governing Body of BurnsideAcademy,Iamdelightedto welcome everyone back home to Burnside Academy where we belong.
“The project teams have workedtirelesslytoinstalland equip the temporary school ready for our occupancy.”