St John’s School in Marlborough has unveiled plans for a new £1.2 million sixth form centre.
If permitted by planners, the new building – financed by a £1.19 million grant from the Education Funding Agency – will be erected at the entrance to the school, which opened to pupils in December 2009.
The reason a school that is less than five years old needs a major new building project is the result of changing government legislation.
All young people must now stay in education or training until they are 18 years old, and with 1,700 students, the school is already oversubscribed.
The sixth form centre, which will have eight classrooms and a private study area, will serve an area of 250 square miles, including the Pewsey area – Pewsey Vale School educates young people to the age of 16.
St John’s sixth form – which currently educates almost 400 pupils – already has an enviable reputation: In 2013 A-level results set a new record and 58 percent of grades were A* to B. Students can also follow he broad-based International Baccalaureate, and in 2012 100 percent of IB students passed the Diploma, compared to 78 percent worldwide.
It is ranked in the top 25 percent of schools, based on the progress made by students from GCSE to A-level and the quality of teaching and learning.
Last week, principal Patrick Hazlewood unveiled the plans to town councillors and other VIPs, including Wiltshire Councillors Stewart Dobson and Jemima Milton, mayor of Marlborough Guy Loosemore, deputy mayor Marian Hannaford Dobson, Marlborough town councillor Margaret Rose, as well as Tony Forsythe, deputy head at Pewsey Vale School, and representatives from the governing bodies of both St John’s and Pewsey Vale School.
Dr Hazlewood said: “This grant is wonderful news for all local students. The new centre will relieve the pressure on classroom space, and enable us to offer a broader range of courses to ensure that local young people have more choices and opportunities for their education after GCSEs.
“There was huge competition from schools all over England for this funding, and we feel incredibly privileged to have been awarded this grant at a time of so many public sector cuts”.
