Plans halted for Ridgmont Lower School closure to re-explore two-tier options
Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Councillors have stopped plans to close Ridgmont Lower School and will now re-examine the potential for the school and three others to become Primary Schools as part of the Three-to-Two-Tier programme.
Aspley Guise, Husborne Crawley, Ridgmont and Woburn lower schools had been part of plans to become Primary Schools, but it was announced in 2022 that they were unable to be developed due to site constraints.
A report last year, showed that Ridgmont Lower had a low number of pupils attending the school, impacting on the school’s overall financial viability, and a Have Your Say consultation was launched in the autumn to ask parents and local residents their views on the future of the school.
During this period, the Save Our School group was formed by members of the community and a business case was put forward, including a four-year recovery plan outlining the potential for the school to remain open.
The results of the Have Your Say consultation and this business case were considered by our Executive on Tuesday April 9, and a decision was made to defer plans to progress to a statutory consultation in favour of looking again at the two-tier education options for all lower schools in Woburn Sands and the surrounding areas.
Executive Member for Families, Education and Children, Councillor Hayley Whitaker, said:
We’ve listened to the views of the community, during and since last year’s Have Your Say consultation on the future of Ridgmont Lower School, and we have recognised and appreciate the work done by the Save our School (SOS) group in presenting a business case. We have met with the group, and we know how important it is to the local community to explore every opportunity and we want to make sure we have worked through all available options so that we make the right decision. This decision represents the first stage of a long process, but one in which we aim to keep the community updated along the way.