PUPILS will move into Oxford’s first new secondary school for 60 years when the new academic year starts next month.

Earlier this week, the Oxford Mail was given an exclusive glimpse inside The Swan School in Marston Ferry Road.

The school opened last September in temporary accommodation built on playing fields at The Cherwell School in Summertown.

Students and teachers will now move to the permanent, multi-million-pound home in Marston in the coming weeks.

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Work on the school started in February 2019 and will be completed to allow all students to start on September 14.

New Year 7 pupils will start a week earlier, with matriculation days being held for them at the Cherwell School.

The week delay is to allow the hard-standing areas at the front of the school to be completed.

Oxford Mail:

Kay Wood, the school’s headteacher, said: “I have been lucky enough to have been able to see the school as it has been going up, but I am still inspired every time I cycle through the gates.

“I am sure that the students who come through the gates themselves at the start of September will be similarly inspired.

“Schools are predominantly about people, but I don’t think you can underestimate the importance of surroundings when it comes to a child’s education.

“We are very lucky in being able to provide top-class surroundings for our students, and now the onus is on the teaching and support staff to live up to the setting that they will be working in.

Oxford Mail:

“We are confident they will deliver because we know that they all share a passion for The Swan School being much, much more than amazing buildings and facilities.

“The delay of a week is regrettable and we apologise for this, but the pandemic has put extra pressure on what was already a challenging project.

“The alternative to all students starting a week late was the whole school staying in temporary accommodation, with limited facilities, until the October half-term, and we hope that parents will feel that we have made the right decision.”

Oxford Mail:

The first intake of 120 students took place last September, with the school set to welcome another 120 next month.

From 2021, the annual intake of students into Year 7 will increase to 180, and the sixth form will also be opened.

The school will eventually cater for 1,260 students.

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Applications for places at all Oxfordshire secondary schools for September 2021 open in the next fortnight and close on October 31.

The school day at The Swan is longer than at other state schools in the city, with a later start time of 9.15am, with the day finishing at 4.35pm.

The late start is to reduce congestion by avoiding a clash with the Cherwell School, while the extra time at the end of the day allows for extra-curricular activities and for homework to be done in a supervised environment.