Rotherham's newest school celebrates its first birthday

Eastwood Village Primary, the first new primary school to be built in the boorugh in 30 years, was officially opened by Mayor of Rotherham, Cllr Lyndsay Pitchley, on Friday — a year after its pupils first moved in.

The new £6.4 million school on Eldon Road, which is built on stilts to take account of flood risks, has 315 pupils and a 44-place nursery.

The academy school is run by the Central Learning Partnership Trust, which also runs Coleridge and East Dene Primary Schools. 

Hesd teacher Kirsty Ridley said: “We are happy to be part of the celebrations to mark the formal opening of the newest primary school build it in Rotherham in the last 30 years.

“The school is state-of-the-art building, impressive in stature, overlooking the River Don and serving an area of rich cultural diversity.

“Our children are happy enthuastic learning making huge progress in their learning and acquisition of language development hour by hour.

“The future of the school is exciting as we increase our capacity to educate more pupils, train new professionals and lead others on securing the best teaching practices in Rotherham, South Yorkshire and beyond.”

Cllr Gordon Watson, deputy leader of Rotherham Borough Council, said: “Children are at the heart of the Rotherham communities and our corporate commitment is to make sure they all have the best start in life.

“In order to achieve this it is vital that we invest in their education, which means we are also investing in future Rotherham generations.

“Rotherham already has an excellent reputation for providing good quality education, demonstrated by the latest exam results. This new school will be part of keeping up this reputation.”

The school opened in September 2015, taking in pupils from nursery up to Year 4 and will eventually take pupils up to Year 6.