Next steps for new Berwick Academy buildings set to go before Northumberland County Council cabinet

The long-awaited project to build a new high school in Berwick looks set to move a step closer.

Northumberland County Council has confirmed that an outline business case for the project to develop new buildings for Berwick Academy will be brought to the local authority's ruling cabinet in the "near future". An investment of more than £50 million for the schools in the partnership has been secured for some time, but it now appears the proposals are finally moving forward.

It comes after the cabinet signed off on plans to restructure first schools within the partnership into a primary and secondary model from next September. Technical advisers have now been appointed to develop and deliver the plans, while architects have created a series of designs for the first schools and a new state-of-the-art Family Hub facility at the new Wooler Primary School.

Coun Guy Renner-Thompson, cabinet member for education, said: “We want to ensure the right and best education for all our children in Northumberland and this is just the latest part of the wider development of our school estate across the county.

“It involves schools across North Northumberland, from Wooler to Belford to Berwick and will not only expand our first schools but create more places for children with additional needs closer to home.”

However, Berwick East's independent ward councillor Georgina Hill was critical of the administration's management of the reorganisation, claiming it had been 'disastrously mismanaged'. Her comments came as teachers in the partnership's middle schools took further strike action against potential job losses.

She said: "We are heading to four years since that investment was secured and nothing meaningful has been done to progress it. They are only now talking about outline business cases.

"The £50m seems like a headline figure they want to put in next year’s election leaflets - but they have done nothing to demonstrate any commitment to delivering a new school. Construction costs have gone up substantially since 2021.

"Everyone knew that turning around the Academy and education here was not going to be done overnight but more vital years have been wasted and another generation of our children and young people have been utterly failed.

Parents, pupils, staff and the whole town have all been badly let down, school reorganisation has been disastrously mismanaged by this NCC administration and there has been false promise after false promise. Frankly, there needs to be resignations over this.”

Coun Hill was also concerned that the council were planning to redevelop the existing school rather than develop new buildings. However, Coun Renner Thompson said she was "completely wrong" on this.

He added: "The budget for the Berwick Partnership reorganisation has just been increased to £50 million. Our schools, the council, architects and builders are all working together as we speak to bring forward a project that will transform the future of education in Berwick and North Northumberland for generations to come.

"The vast majority of our schools are quietly getting on with the day job and preparing to adjust to the new system they agreed to. It is shame that instead of working together for the long-term future of our children, Coun Hill is only interested in grabbing newspaper headlines as we head towards local elections in May."

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