CLASS sizes normally associated with the independent sector are to be introduced at a primary academy thanks to a major investment in resources.
Extra staff and new classrooms will come on stream at Reid Street Academy, Darlington, which will reduce the number of pupils to just 20 in Years 3 to 6 each morning.
A £200,000 building programme will see a first storey block added to the 420-pupil school that will be staffed by four extra teachers.
From September class sizes will drop from the current 30 to 20 allowing greater individual attention to be given to children, particularly in crucial areas such as numeracy and literacy, the basic building blocks of successful education.
Reid Street is in the heart of a concentrated housing area with severe restrictions on space.
“We are landlocked so the only alternative to expanding outwards was to build upwards,” said Principal Paul Rhatigan. “So we have added an extra storey to existing classrooms to give us the space we will need to deliver smaller class sizes.”
In July 2011 the school became one of the first in the North East to convert to self-governing primary academy status and is considered good with outstanding features by Government inspectors, Ofsted.
“We have been working towards smaller class sizes since last September. Whilst all schools use their resources carefully to enhance educational provision for their children, I don’t know of any other primary school in the region implementing a similar strategy,” Mr Rhatigan said.
“We have been able to achieve this owing to the freedoms and opportunities that academy status affords us enabling us to manage finances, expand the workforce and develop the school.
“It will allow us to give students far more individual teacher attention creating the potential for them to make even stronger progress.”
Four extra staff have been recruited and the building work will be finalised over the summer holidays in time for the September start.
Mr Rhatigan added: “I must also thank parents, staff and the children for their support and for working so patiently around the contractors as they complete the building work.”