Darwen pupils to swap schools

10:20am Friday 8th August 2008

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MORE than 1,000 Darwen Vale pupils will be moved to the former Darwen Moorland site during an 18-month renovation.

Blackburn with Darwen Council bosses have said that the move will “cause the least disruption” to students.

Under the council’s £150million Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme, which plans to replace or renovate all its secondary schools, Darwen Vale High School and Engineering College will be one of the first schools affected.

In 2010, work will start on significantly refurbishing the Blackburn Road site to bring it up to modern standards, whilst keeping the original frontage.

The work is expected to last for 18 months and when it starts, the council and school have agreed that its 1,200-plus pupils will move to the former Darwen Moorland site in Holden Fold.

This will be empty by then, as Moorland pupils will be part of the new Darwen Academy at a new building in the Redearth Triangle.

The council is planning for the academy to be completed in time for pupils to move in by September 2010.

It has been agreed that Darwen Vale pupils will move into the vacated site, after some refurbishment to the buildings.

Coun Chris Thayne, the council’s executive member for childrens services, said: “BSF is an exciting time, but we recognise the importance of school life continuing as normal for all pupils while the building work is carried out.

“We have weighed up all the options for Darwen Vale and feel that transferring the school to a different site will cause the least disruption and enable work to progress as quickly as possible.

“The school will transfer to a refurbished site at Holden Fold from September 2010 and pupils will continue to benefit from well equipped, purpose built school facilities and the same high standards of education they have always received while their new school is being built.”