A new primary school for Derby

About the project

A new housing development is proposed at Snelsmoor Grange, Boulton Moor, for 800 dwellings.It is anticipated that 224 primary school pupils will be generated by a development of this size.  In addition, a housing development on Fellow Lands Way, Chellaston, made up of 190 dwellings, has recently been completed. Based on the Council's pupil yield multipliers, the total of 990 new dwellings across the two developments will generate an estimated 277 primary aged pupils. 

Derby City Council has identified that additional primary capacity is required at Boulton Moor to serve the new housing developments at Snelsmoor Grange and Fellow Lands Way. A new one and a half form entry primary school (315 pupils), with a 39-place nursery, is proposed to open in September 2023, to be located on a new site within the Snelsmoor Grange housing development. Work is due to begin on the new school building in Summer 2022.

A one and a half form entry primary school is planned for the following reasons:

• The likely pupil yield from the new housing aligns to a one and a half form of entry primary school (315 pupils)
• Primary schools in the Alvaston and Chellaston areas are either full or are almost full
• A new school will increase choice and diversity for parents.

Derby City Council is, therefore, seeking proposals from appropriate sponsors to open this new school. This school would be deemed a free school. 

Potential academy sponsors

Under Section 13 of the Education Act 1996, local authorities must ensure that primary and secondary education is available to meet the needs of the population of their area.

The Education Act 2011 changed the arrangements for establishing new schools and introduced Section 6A (the academy / free school presumption) to the Education and Inspections Act 2006. Where a local authority identifies the need to establish a new school it must, in the first instance, seek proposals to establish an academy.

Profile of the area

Snelsmoor Grange - Boulton Ward

Alvaston is a large suburb on the South side of Derby, which is covered by two wards, Alvaston and Boulton. The Boulton ward is adjacent to the Snelsmoor Grange housing development.

• According to the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2019, all areas of Boulton are amongst the 50% most deprived in England, 56% are amongst the 20% most deprived and 11% are amongst the 10% most deprived.
• According to the January 2021 School Census, 24% of pupils at Boulton primary schools are from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and 21% speak English as an additional language.
• 44% of statutory school aged pupils at Boulton primary schools receive the pupil premium.
• 2% of pupils attending Boulton primary schools have an Education, Health and Care Plan and a further 16% receive Special Educational Needs support.
• In 2019 59% of Year 6 pupils at Boulton primary schools met the expected standard at the end of Key Stage 2.

Fellow Lands Way - Chellaston Ward

Chellaston is a large suburb on the south side of Derby. The Chellaston ward covers the suburbs of Chellaston and Shelton Lock. According to the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2019, 10% of areas in Chellaston are amongst the 20% most deprived in England, whilst 40% of areas are amongst the 20% least deprived.

• According to the January 2021 School Census, 30% of pupils at Chellaston primary schools are from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and 12% speak English as an additional language.
• 24% of statutory school aged pupils at Chellaston primary schools are receive the pupil premium.
• 1% of pupils attending Chellaston primary schools have an Education, Health and Care Plan and a further 12% receive Special Educational Needs support.
• In 2019 69% of Year 6 pupils at Chellaston primary schools met the expected standard at the end of Key Stage 2.

The school

Derby City Council is proposing to open a mainstream, one and a half form entry (admission number of 45) primary school on the Snelsmoor Grange development at Boulton Moor.

The school will be for boys and girls aged 4 to 11 years and, in addition, will operate a 39-place nursery.

The school will be expected to be fully inclusive and to educate children with Special Educational Needs for whom mainstream education is considered appropriate. All promoters are required to follow the School Admissions Code and the School Admission Appeals Code. The proposed catchment area of the new school is shown in Appendix 3 - Fellow Lands and Snelsmoor Grange Catchment area map.

The school will open in September 2023, with a staggered intake to minimise any possible detrimental effects on neighbouring schools. It is anticipated that the school will offer places in the following manner upon opening;

The school would then increase in size gradually each academic year, until it reaches its capacity of 315 pupils in September 2029. However, if additional places in other year groups are required before this date, the structure will be determined by pupil numbers and the school's budget. The successful sponsor will need to confirm that they will work with Derby City Council to ensure that the school grows in a way that supports the new housing development and does not destabilise other local schools.

The new school building has been designed to allow community use at evenings and weekends and it is expected that the school's facilities will be made available for out of hours use by local community groups.

The new school will be located on one site on the Snelsmoor Grange housing development site. The school site has been acquired by the housing developers and development of new homes will be underway in the next year.

Planning permission for the new school has already been granted and the school will be built in accordance with the standards set out in Building Bulletin 103. The development is accessed off Field Lane, Alvaston (postcode DE24 0GW). View the site location and plans for the school.

The planning Decision Notice sets out a number of pre-occupation conditions that will need to be fulfilled by the successful bidder before the new school can open. Bidders should pay particular attention to the requirements set out in Conditions 8, 9a and 9d.

Education plan

Applicants should take account of the relevant criteria in Appendix 2 - Excerpt from Annex C of the free school presumption guidance.

As a minimum, please ensure you include the following:

• An ambitious, broad and balanced, deliverable curriculum plan which is consistent with the vision and pupil intake. This could include a curriculum table and pupil build up chart.
• Strategies for measuring pupil performance effectively and setting challenging targets.
• A staffing structure that will deliver the planned curriculum within the expected income levels; with a focus on outstanding teaching (including strategies for effective performance management). This could also include an organogram and staff build up chart.
• The needs of all children are fully provided for and how the school will be fully inclusive.
• Details of enrichment and extended services, for example, breakfast clubs, sports clubs, homework clubs and music/art clubs.
• The school’s approach to:
  • PHSE;
  • the Prevent Duty;
  • safeguarding and welfare; and
  • promoting fundamental British values (democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs).

Vision

Applicants should take account of the relevant criteria in Appendix 2 - Excerpt from Annex C of the free school presumption guidance.

As a minimum, please ensure you include the following:

• A strong educational vision and a curriculum delivery based on high standards of attainment for each key stage.
• Plans for appropriate engagement with the local community and parents during the pre-opening period and any on-going engagement.
• Excellent support facilities to meet the needs of all children, including looked after children, those with Special Educational Needs, etc.
• A commitment to excellent outcomes and high quality of teaching and learning.

Funding and costs

Revenue costs

The Council is required to meet the pre- and post-opening costs associated with establishing the new school. Local authorities are required to make provision in their growth funds to support increases in pupil numbers relating to basic need. This relates to the per-pupil revenue funding in addition to funding for pre-opening development costs and post-opening funding required to address diseconomies of scale until a school reaches full capacity. The Council has a limited budget to do this and will work with the selected sponsor to agree a reasonable funding allocation to cover pre- and post-opening costs.

Capital costs and school site

Derby City Council can confirm that it has identified the capital funding needed for establishing the new school.

The new school is expected to cost £8.5 million and will be funded through Section 106 contributions from the Snelsmoor Grange and Fellow Lands Way housing developers. The Council has agreed a site for the school with the developers, and the site will be provided at no cost through the Section 106 agreement.

The site will be leased to the new school’s academy sponsor for a term of 125 years.

Capacity and capability

Applicants should take account of the relevant criteria in Appendix 2 - Excerpt from Annex C of the free school presumption guidance.

As a minimum, please ensure you include the following:

• The resources you would draw on and/or deploy to support the development of the new free school by the opening date.
• Clear evidence that you have the range of skills and abilities necessary to set up and then run a school effectively, including:
  • managing school finances
  • leadership;
  • project management;
  • marketing;
  • human resources;
  • safeguarding; and
  • health and safety
• How the school would be organised and what the governance arrangements would look like, including a diagram of the proposed structures.

Impact and equalities assessments

As prescribed by section 9 of the Academies Act 2010 and section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, Derby City Council has assessed the potential impact of the new school on existing provision in the area.

Please see Appendix 4 - Education Impact Assessment relating to the new school.

Derby City Council has also considered whether the school will impact on any groups with protected characteristics. Please see Appendix 5 - Equalities Impact Assessment relating to the new school.

Key dates

The table below shows the indicative timeline for the project:

How to apply

1. Review all the information, specifications and appendices listed.

2. Complete Appendix 1 - Free School Presumption application form and include the required supporting information detailed in the Education plan, Vision and Capacity and capability sections.

3. Email the completed application form and supporting information to school.proposals@derby.gov.uk

Alternatively application forms can be posted to:

Helen Zwart
Project Development Officer
People Services Directorate
Derby City Council
The Council House
Corporation Street
Derby
DE1 2FS

4. Bids should arrive no later than 5 pm on Tuesday 29 March 2022.

5. All proposers will be contacted after the closing date when bids have been reviewed.

Assessment of Proposals

Derby City Council is committed to commissioning the best possible education provision for school-aged children living in Derby. Interested parties are invited to submit a formal bid to the Assessment Panel to demonstrate why their organisation is best suited to become the new primary school’s academy sponsor.
Our assessment criteria mirror those set out by the Department for Education in Appendix 2 - Excerpt from Annex C of the free school presumption guidance. These focus on vision, education plan, capacity and capability. Responses to each of the criteria will be scored on a scale of 0-3 points as set out in the guidance issued by the Department for Education. The scoring will be unweighted.

The Regional School Commissioner (RSC) for East Midlands and the Humber, on behalf of the Secretary of State, will consider local authority assessments and recommendations before deciding which proposer is in the best position to take forward the new school. The RSC will inform the local authority and the successful proposer of its decision, and the local authority will inform any unsuccessful proposers.

Appendices

• Appendix 1 - Free School Presumption application form
• Appendix 2 - Excerpt from Annex C of the free school presumption guidance
• Appendix 3 - Fellow Lands and Snelsmoor Grange Catchment area map
• Appendix 4 - Education Impact Assessment
• Appendix 5 - Equalities Impact Assessment

Further information

If you would like further information, please contact Helen Zwart by telephone on 01332 642723 or email school.proposals@derby.gov.uk.

Please note, the local authority-led, free school presumption is a different route to the DfEs free school programme. Further information about how to establish a new school via the DfEs free school programme route can be found on the GOV.UK website.