Oatlands Junior School expands with new classrooms and learning space

Oatlands Junior School in Harrogate have expended with the addition of two new classrooms and a wide, bright corridor that is also a learning space.

The development will accommodate 62 more children and the corridor has some ‘pods’  and some other high-backed furniture as well as tables and chairs. It means that teaching assistants can take out groups of children, usually around 6, to deliver specific interventions.

The children benefit as they have the space to be taught specific knowledge, which is tailored to learning needs – it is quiet area, away from the rest of their class.

Chris Tulley, Chair of Governors, said:

We are absolutely delighted to be opening our new extension block which gives us extra classrooms and wonderful small group learning areas. We are really excited for all of our children to be able to benefit from this unique space.

Our expansion was needed to accommodate growing numbers due to the ever-increasing popularity of the school and I would like to thank NYCC and Red Kite Learning Trust for working with us to provide these fantastic additional facilities.

Hannah McNamara, acting headteacher, said:

We are all absolutely delighted with the extension; it has provided us with the space not only to house our increasing number of pupils but also to deliver interventions to children in all of our year groups, across the school. The two things teachers always need more of are: time and space.

This has provided us with the space for children to have specific teaching that’s tailored to them. Our Year 6 pupils are already benefiting from their classrooms and they haven’t stopped talking about the under-floor heating!

We want to thank North Yorkshire and the Red Kite Learning Trust for funding the project. It is going to have such a huge educational impact, on all of our learners, for years to come.

The school is part of the Red Kite Learning Trust.

Richard Sheriff, Executive Headteacher, Harrogate Grammar School, CEO of the Red Kite Learning Trust spoke to the children and have his thanks to North Yorkshire County Council and the team that had come together at the school. He said that the new classrooms and corridor is really special to the school and the school needed to expand to give the children the space and education they needed.

North Yorkshire County Councillor, Cliff Trotter, formally opened the new space with a ribbon cutting.