PRESS RELEASE

Brent Council has secured £14.7 million of funding from the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) to create much-needed additional primary school places.

The authority was one of 34 councils to bid successfully for extra cash which will be used to expand and increase capacity at existing primary schools by 2011.

The significant numbers of people moving into Brent with large families, coupled with rising birth rates, has put tremendous pressure on school places in the borough.

In 2006 there were 3,000 applications for reception places but this number has been rising sharply ever since. This year there were 3,400 applications for reception places and based on birth rates this number is set to rise to 3,600 by 2013.

The council has already taken steps to meet the increasing demand for places. Wembley Primary School, which opened in September 2008 following an amalgamation of the former infant and junior schools, has helped to provide an extra seven primary classrooms. The ARK Academy will also provide another 14 classrooms when it opens next year.

Councillor Bob Wharton, Lead Member for Children and Families, says: "So far we have coped with the increasing demand by putting temporary classrooms in school playgrounds but we cannot continue doing that.

"This new money is vitally important because it will enable us to provide permanent teaching space - roughly 30 extra classrooms. It does not provide the total solution but it will get us through the next couple of years.

"We have identified schools which are willing to expand and which are in areas where demand is high. We now have to work quickly to get architectural plans agreed and get the schemes through planning approval and tendering."