Dartmoor schools remain on Government list for rebuild funding as scheme expands

Several schools serving Dartmoor communities remain in the government’s school rebuilding programme as ministers prepare to invite more applications nationwide.

Nine Devon schools are still included in the scheme, which was expanded this week by Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson as part of a wider package of measures.

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These include a £3 billion plan to create 50,000 specialist places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in mainstream schools across England.

The announcement said applications would be invited from a further 250 schools, with those in the “most severe need” being prioritised.

Nearly 520 schools from across the country remain on the list, having applied through various phases of the rebuilding programme in 2021, 2022 and 2024.

ABOVE: River Dart Academy, Dartington (Image: Jim Brooks/Google Maps)

The nine Devon schools still included are:

• Dawlish College
• River Dart Academy
• Swimbridge C of E Primary School
• Tavistock College
• Tipton St John C of E Primary School
• Tiverton High School
• Whipton Barton Infants and Nursery School
• Exmouth Community College
• Kenton Primary School

Of the schools listed, Tavistock College directly serves Dartmoor communities, while River Dart Academy in Dartington draws some pupils from areas on the southern edge of the moor.

ABOVE: Tavistock College, Tavistock (Image: Jeanette Mullins/Google Maps)

Varying levels of work are required at the schools, Tipton St John C of E Primary School, for example, has a history of flooding at its current location, and efforts have been ongoing to identify a new site.

Rachel Gilmour, Liberal Democrat MP for Tiverton and Minehead, campaigned in part on securing a rebuild for Tiverton High School.

Her website states: “Tiverton High School was built on a floodplain over 60 years ago and Environment Agency reports have scored regular flooding of school buildings as a ‘risk to life’.

“Moreover, the school is said to have asbestos present across various buildings, and with a built capacity of 1,300, the infrastructure cannot meet the required capacity of 1,800 pupils.”

ABOVE: Tipton St John Primary School was cleared up after flooding swept through the playground in 2016 (Image free to use by LDRS partners)

On the government’s announcement about SEND places, a spokesperson said it could not confirm at this stage how many places would be allocated to each local authority.

Ms Phillipson said: “A child’s background should not determine where they end up. Education is the route to opportunity, and opportunity should be for every child, regardless of their individual needs and circumstances.

“For too many families, the reality has been very different, but this government will fix the broken education system for children and young people with SEND by making sure that their local school is also the right school.

“Ahead of our reforms next year, we’re laying the foundations of a new system that shifts children with SEND from forgotten to included and earns the confidence of parents.

“This £3 billion investment will transform lives. It will open the door to opportunity for tens of thousands of children with SEND, giving them the chance to learn, belong and succeed in their local community. This is how we build an education system that works for every child.”

ABOVE: Rachel Gilmour, MP For Tiverton And Minehead, in Parliament (Image: Rachel Gilmour)

Separately, the Department for Education released a list of free schools that are either in the pre-opening phase or have been cancelled or withdrawn.

ACE Cranbrook was listed as “pre-opening”, while Northam Primary Academy was included on the cancelled or withdrawn list, alongside Windmill Hill Primary School in Torbay.