Purpose

Jessie Younghusband Primary School is a Primary
School providing up to 210 places for children aged 4-11
years.  The proposal is to relocate
Jessie Younghusband from its current location to a new 1 Form of
Entry (FE) Primary School (210 places) which is being built on the
housing development west of Chichester, known as Minerva
Heights.
 
St Anthony’s School in Chichester is a
Special School for children and young people aged between 4 and 16
years with moderate learning difficulties. It currently shares a
site with Jessie Younghusband. There is a need to expand St
Anthony’s to ensure there are appropriate and sufficient
places in accordance with the County Council’s

Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND)
Strategy 2019-2024. The
relocation of Jessie Younghusband would leave a vacant building
which could be used for the purposes of expanding St
Anthony’s special school.
 
The creation of a new primary school is for the
purpose of accommodating the additional children who will come to
live in Minerva Heights which means it is also necessary to propose
revisions to the catchment areas of other schools in the local area
should the proposals proceed.
 
In December 2023 the Cabinet Member for Children
and Young People, Learning and Skills approved the launch of a
public consultation, in accordance with Department for Education
(DfE) guidance, to seek views on the proposed changes

(decision CYPLS05(23/24) refers).  Details of
the consultation process and the feedback received are set out in
section 4 of this report. 
 
The DfE guidance sets out the stages of the
process that should be undertaken when considering relocation of a
school.  Having completed the first
stage of the initial consultation, the Cabinet Member is now asked
to consider the feedback received and approve the progression of
the proposals to the next stage of the process.
 
 
 
 

Decision

The Cabinet Member for Children and Young
People, Learning and Skills has approved:
 

(1)       
The publication of formal statutory proposals for
the relocation of Jessie Younghusband Primary School to the primary school site
within the Minerva Heights development.  The new school is expected to open in September
2025.

(2)       
The intent to publish formal statutory proposals for the
expansion of St Anthony’s school into the vacated buildings
currently occupied by Jessie Younghusband Primary School,
should the proposed relocation of Jessie Younghusband Primary
School proceed.