Outstanding Wynyard Church of England Academy's new home is officially open

An outstanding school's new home is officially open.
Bishop Paul blesses the new Wynyard CofE Primary School on its official openingBishop Paul blesses the new Wynyard CofE Primary School on its official opening
Bishop Paul blesses the new Wynyard CofE Primary School on its official opening

Bishop of Durham The Rt Revd Paul Butler opened Wynyard Church of England Academy’s new Billingham building.

Since it was opened in 2015 with just 16 children, the school has gone from nothing to being rated as outstanding in its first Ofsted inspection in 2018.

Bishop Paul officially opens Wynyard CofE Primary SchoolBishop Paul officially opens Wynyard CofE Primary School
Bishop Paul officially opens Wynyard CofE Primary School
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The school, which operated from a series of temporary classrooms for the first three years, moved into its new permanent building with 291 children in January 2019.

Eventually, it will have a capacity of nearly 460 children including 39 full-time equivalent nursery places.

The Diocese of Durham founded the school in response to the education needs of Wynyard and surrounding areas.

Director of Education for the Dioceses of Durham and Newcastle, Paul Rickeard said: "I am excited that we have opened this new building for the incredibly successful Wynyard Church of England Primary School.

Cutting the ribbonCutting the ribbon
Cutting the ribbon
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"Since we opened in 2015, we have grown significantly achieving an Outstanding rating by Ofsted and SIAMs in just a few short years.”

Head Teacher Roger Ward said: "We have watched this new building grow from the design stage to where it is now and to have Bishop Paul formally open the building is a really special moment for all involved.

"It’s been nearly four years since we started out as Wynyard CofE Primary but now we have moved in and fully occupying this fantastic state of the art building. We are sure that it will be a brilliant acquisition and long-term asset for the community."

Bishop Paul added: "I am delighted to have been asked to be part of the school’s journey.

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"It only seems like a short time since I broke ground on the new building and today I am here to formally open it!

"This is a real success story, it demonstrates how the Church of England is able to be an important part of the lives of the community.

"Across this Diocese, we educate nearly 16,000 children each day and I am thrilled to be part of that as yet another new chapter is formally begun."