28th July 2020

Dear Parents & Carers,

Harlington School is getting a brand new building!

I am delighted to announce that we are going to be getting a brand new school building! The Department of Education (DfE) are fully funding the rebuilding of our school, with a multi - million pound investment. In addition to a brand new school, the DfE are also rebuilding the library, adult education and sports centre community facilities. If all goes to plan, the building works will commence in the Spring term 2021, and we will move into our new school in January 2023.

This is a wonderful and exciting time for our school, giving us facilities that will match the very best of other new school buildings in the country. The new building will enable us to increase our school roll, providing an additional 45 places in each year group, giving more students the opportunity to join us, and reduce our waiting list. We will also be expanding our highly regarded provision for students with special educational needs, with a new designated unit for young people with Autism joining our current specialist provision for students with physical and sensory disabilities. The 6th Form will also have a brand new wing.

The community facilities include a new Adult Education Centre, the continuation of a shared community and school library, and a brand new Sports Centre. The new school and community facilities will be accessed via a beautiful, tree lined, pedestrian boulevard from Pinkwell Lane.

Pleasingly, we will be able to remain in our current building, with minimal interruption to learning, right up until the day we move in. Then our current building will be demolished, and playing fields will be instated along Pinkwell Lane in place of the current building, providing a peaceful and soothing vista at the roadside and excellent outdoor sports facilities. There will also be no safety issues, as the building site will not be accessed from Pinkwell Lane.

Please take a look at all of the information on the attached flyer and also the information microsite, using this link:

https://wates-tenders.co.uk/harlingtonschool/

Here you will find the proposed layouts and architect designs of the new school. Most importantly, there is an opportunity for you to give your feedback in support of the project.

I hope you will lend your voice to supporting the proposals, so that the DfE, Wates, the building company and also the local planning department will know how much we as a school community are in support of this wonderful project – a brand new school building that your children fully deserve, and new facilities for our wider community. Please take a moment to fill in the response form with your support – thank you. There is only a short time to respond to the public consultation if we are to meet planning deadlines – the planning application is due to be submitted on the 7th August 2020, so responses need to be received before then.

We are incredibly excited about our new school, and hope that you will be too. We are looking forward to sharing all the plans with the students on their return in September, but wanted our parent body to be able to support the public consultation to the project before then. But I am sure you will want to look at the microsite together!

With best wishes to you and your children for the remainder of the summer holiday,

Kind regards,

Ms E A Horrigan, Headteacher