Hockley Primary School not to re-open in September

The school, in Chevening Gardens, was forced to close by the Department for Education in June after the discovery of reinforced autoclaved concrete in the ceiling – sparking safety concerns.

New classrooms were due to be delivered in coming days so children could return to the school for the start of the new term.

However, according to a letter sent out to parents today, the Department for Education (DfE) and their contractor McAvoy gave “firm assurances” to the Chevening Gardens school that the new modular buildings will be installed for September 4, but has since been informed the project cannot be completed on time.

As a result, heading back to online teaching has been ruled out, and more options are being examined, with parents expected to be told at a meeting next Tuesday at the Westerings School, in Sunny Road.

The Echo has contacted the Academies Enterprise Trust (AET) to ask what these options are, but they declined to comment.

Full - Hockley Primary School's letter to parents updating them on Septmeber plans (Image: Public)

In the letter by headteacher David Jenkins and primary regional education director Melissa Heatherson, it said: “Thank you for your ongoing patience and understanding about the situation with our school building. We are now able to provide you with an update.

“We want to start by saying that everyone at Hockley Primary and AET has been working tirelessly since last May to make sure that we could start the new school year back at Hockley and had been given firm assurances by the DfE and their contractor, McAvoy, that our new modular classrooms would be ready for September 4.

“To our disappointment and frustration, we were informed by the DfE and McAvoy just this week that they cannot deliver the project on time.

“We know this will come as extremely upsetting and concerning news to everyone. Many of you had already expressed concerns about moving to online learning at the start of term.

“We want to be absolutely clear that we will not be moving to online learning under any circumstance, as we recognise the significant disruption this causes for families in terms of work and other commitments.

“We are working through the details of a number of options for the start of term and plan to have our preferred option confirmed and ready to share with you on Tuesday, August 29, when we will host a parents meeting at 6.30pm in the Westerings Hall, Sunny Road.

“We will also run a virtual meeting the following morning at 11.30am on Wednesday, August 30, for anyone unable to attend.

“During these sessions intended to share further details of the modular building project and talk through the logistics for September. We will also share this with you all via a letter, so you have details of the plan in writing.

“Mr Jenkins, Mrs Cronin, Mrs Smith, Mrs Heatherson and Mr Browning, our chief operating officer, will also be attending. As you know, we care passionately about the children of Hockley Primary School, and we recognise the importance of this time of year and making sure that all children and families have a positive start to the academic year.

“Again, we cannot stress enough just how much we share your frustrations with the whole process. We continue to raise our concerns at every opportunity and with every level of Government.

“Our MP, Mark Francois, has been enormously supportive in this regard, and we will continue to work closely with him.

“We know this is a lot to take in and appreciate your understanding throughout. We also want to reiterate that we will continue to do everything we can to make sure that your children’s education is unaffected by this unexpected disruption, and that they continue to have an excellent experience of school with us.

“Thank you again, and we hope to see as many of you as possible at the meeting on Tuesday.”