News / Education

New secondary school for Bristol

By Pamela Parkes  Monday Sep 19, 2016

One of Bristol’s most successful and oversubscribed schools has been told it can open a new secondary school in the city.

Cathedral Schools Trust will aim to open the school in the north of the city in September 2018. The school will specialise in employability skills by forging links with the business community. 

A suitable site for the school is yet to be identified. 

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There will be six forms of entry (180 students per year group) and the school says it “aims to provide academic, vocational and professional placement opportunities developing students’ life skills through co-­curricular activities”.

The school will also prioritise a significant percentage of places for children from low income families.

Executive principal Neil Blundell said: “The need for school places is critical and we are committed to working in partnership with the local authority and other educational leaders to ensure that we secure an appropriate site and build on the rapid improvements in educational outcomes for Bristol children.”

Stephen Parsons, chair of the trust, said: “We are all so pleased to be able to take on another free school project following the very successful opening of Cathedral Primary School in 2013.

“Both Cathedral Primary and BCCS are the most oversubscribed schools in the city and we recognise how important it to be able to offer more places for Bristol families in our group of schools.“

The school has been announced as part of the government’s Free School programme, which aims to open 500 Free Schools before the next general election. 

Read more: Cathedral School celebrates outstanding report

An earlier version of this article stated that the school would open in the Enterprise Zone by Temple Meads; this information was taken from the trust’s own social media accounts, which have since been updated. The school will open in North Bristol but no site for the school has been identified.

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