A series of temporary buildings have been put up for at least four years for work to start
The new school buildings in Wavertree
Education officials have moved to quash fears over the impact of temporary buildings put up to welcome hundreds of students at Liverpool’s newest school. Earlier this year, King’s Leadership Academy Wavertree confirmed it would finally welcome an initial cohort of Year 7 students from September after being beset by delays.
In a bid to meet the demand for school places across the city, it had been proposed that Kings Leadership open its fifth site in 2024. With planning permission only being granted for the change of use from office buildings earlier this year, the opening date was pushed back until this autumn.
Liverpool Council’s planning committee has rubber-stamped the opening of a series of temporary buildings to house around 200 pupils at the site on Wavertree Technology Park. It is thought the school will eventually provide 1,050 places for students aged 11 to 16 when work is completed.
Richard Holliday, an agent on behalf of the Department for Education, said the project was borne out of a critical and urgent need for school places in the city and a temporary solution was “essential” to meet local demand. Confusion reigned over whether the date could be met amid a wait for Department for Education (DfE) officials to agree a funding settlement for the new school.
An initial tranche of 210 pupils started their next phase of education at the start of the new school year on September 4. It was revealed in March how new plans were submitted to Liverpool Council for temporary buildings to be set up on the site of the former Sony offices on Rathbone Way to get learners on site in time for the start of term.
Mr Holliday said the site was selected after a “comprehensive” search with the new school aimed at alleviating the need for places. The modular setup is a “practical and efficient” solution in the short term and can be removed with “minimal disruption” when no longer needed, the agent said.
Full planning permission was granted for the two-storey modular school building and associated works for a temporary period of four years. It comprises two linked structures consisting of a single-storey main hall/dining room and a two-storey teaching block.
Mr Holliday said the four-year period was agreed to allow time for the design and development of the new permanent school building. He said a “phased approach” would be adopted to move children from the temporary site to their new surroundings.
Cllr Mary Rasmussen expressed her concerns, however. She said: “I genuinely cannot welcome this school enough; we need more good places.
“You’re at full capacity in four years. Are we looking at the same site to build the school and what problems would that cause? I’d imaging huge and I hope everyone can overcome those.
“I worry about the use of modular units. It’s brilliant when they’re used for a short space of time.
“I do have concerns over the overlap of the new build and the modular units building up to accommodate the children.” The former PlayStation building earmarked for the school could subsequently be demolished to make way for the new facility, having been deemed unviable for educational purposes.
It is projected that the new school building will open in 2028. King’s Wavertree is the fifth secondary school in the Great Schools Trust.
The Trust has two secondary schools in Merseyside, King’s Liverpool in Dingle and King’s Hawthornes in Bootle, alongside two primary schools, including King’s Northway in Wavertree and King’s Lander in Litherland.