Kingsway Park High School (BSF)

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After taking a winter walk around the lanes this frosty morning I found myself walking past my former Middle School on my return home. To be honest I was slightly taken aback by what I saw. Sadly not in an entirely positive way but in somewhat of a disappointed way.

Why? Well, I pretty much remember vividly the arguments put forward for retaining the Balderstone site and the Kingsway site for the new location of the School and I'm kind of sure (correct me if I'm wrong) the Kingsway site won the day because it was going to receive a substantial new-build?

From what I saw this morning the Kingsway site is simply receiving a half/third of a new-build and the rest a cosmetic titivation. The east wing (i.e the old health clinic end) which I thought would be earmarked for demolition is being tarted up with a new fascia similar to that one the old College got in the town centre. An old building in a new shell.

Does anyone know whether the building is going to come in underneath the original £12m budget or is it still going to cost the full amount? Was the BSF money reduced when the coalition government came in? I know some BSF schemes were sadly axed altogether. If there isn't £12m pounds worth of actual bricks & mortar then it appears there are going to be some rather fancy classrooms and facilities inside then? Which then begs the question what was actually wrong with doing the very same exercise to the Balderstone site?