24 Sept 2024
We welcomed the author and actor Joseph Elliott and Councillor Pru Maskell, Vice Chair of Devon County Council, to the Academy to officially open the new English Block. Members of the Braunton Partnership, Trustees, representatives from Devon County Council and the teams that were involved in the project joined the school council students and Year 11 student leaders to celebrate this occasion. The event included Year 9 students and the guests experiencing an inspirational talk from Joseph Elliot on his journey of becoming and being a successful author, followed by a tour of the new building and then an official opening ceremony. Joe and Councillor Pru Maskell cut the ribbon. Councillor Maskell commented 'It was an honour to be back in my former school today for the opening of their fantastic new English Block...A £4 million capital investment from DCC to provide this new facility...Well done to the Principal, Fay Bowler, her staff and the Governors for their hard work and commitment to this project.’
When I started my Headship at Braunton Academy, I was told by the Trustees that one of the biggest issues we had to manage was the rise in the student population and the problem that not all young people in the catchment area could attend the school.
Much of the school building is very old, 87 years old to be precise, which limited our options to provide additional learning spaces within the existing footprint. With one of our core values being community, it has been extremely important to us to find a way to provide an excellent education for all the students in our catchment area.
I would like to thank our site, and finance leads for their creativity working with me to find an area of the school that we could expand without losing social play space. I would like to thank Simon Niles and Hannah Elcock from Devon County Council for their time and patience as we worked through the early logistics of whether we could manage the expansion and then the Trustees that supported the change and have continued to be highly supportive throughout the three years of work from discussions, planning and building.
We had the official opening ceremony and although the main purpose was celebrating the new English Block, the development has also allowed for:
· New sports changing rooms
· Two new computer rooms
· A new multi-purpose classroom
· Three new inclusion/SEND spaces (serving the most vulnerable students)
· Dedicated teacher training space
· New meeting rooms to meet with parents
I would also like to thank:
· Devon County Council and the elected officials for their financial support of £4 million and their time
· Southwest Norse who did a fantastic job project managing the build
· Nevada Construction who were the contractors
· Mark Helliwell and Desi Young for their design of the classroom spaces and the corridor displays.
Finally, our greatest thanks must go to Clive Magson, our Site Manager, for the hours of time and passion he has put into this project. He has managed everything from the Academy’s side and been such a central part in making this possible.
This building and the other improvements are a wonderful legacy for all of us. This building expansion guarantees further generations the ability to continue their education at their local school. Hopefully for at least another 87 years!
Mrs Bowler
Principal