FOUR new schools opening in Oxfordshire in the coming weeks are making rapid last-minute adjustments as they prepare to welcome their first pupils during a global pandemic.

A fifth, The Swan School in Marston, will be opening in its own building for the first time, having spent the last year in temporary accommodation at The Cherwell School.

Barton Park Primary School, GEMS Wantage Primary Academy, Whitelands Academy in Bicester and Cherry Fields Primary School in Banbury will welcome their first students this term.

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On the surface, it may seem that the schools are opening in nightmare circumstances, however Oxfordshire county councillor John Howson believes the schools are lucky.

Mr Howson, deputy chairman of the council’s education scrutiny committee, said: “In a way, the schools are lucky as they’ve got a blank canvas and there won’t be the existing procedures.

Oxford Mail:

John Howson.

“Most of them will be part of an academy chain and will also have the support of the county council.”

Three of the schools – GEMS Wantage Primary, Whitelands and The Swan – are all opening later than anticipated due to delays caused by lockdown.

Adrian Cush, principal at Whitelands, said: “For a school set to open for the first time, the coronavirus crisis has created its own set of challenges.

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“With construction delayed by lockdown, the biggest of these challenges is that we will not be able to move into our new site until later this year.

“To solve this issue, we have worked together with the Gagle Brook Primary School, a fellow member of The White Horse Federation. With the help of the federation, Whitelands Academy students will be sharing Gagle Brook until construction work is completed by the new year.

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Adrian Cush.

“Having opened in 2018, Gagle Brook is currently not yet at full capacity. As a result, there is ample space available to divide the site into two sections, with separate entrances, for both sets of children to safely return to school.”

Jodie Croft, chief executive of GEMS Learning Trust, which will oversee GEMS Wantage Primary, said: “Everything was going very well and motoring along but then like everything, we’ve been hit by Covid.

“We’re now looking to open slightly later on September 21, with a nursery and a class in Reception and a mixed class in Years 1 and 2.

“We’ve been in touch with all the families, about 40 in total, and starting with these numbers means we can enforce social distancing so we’re not worried about having a full school in on day one.”

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

Kay Wood, the school’s headteacher, said: “Opening a new school is challenging and having to deal with regulations surrounding coronavirus has added to the pressure and the workload.

“Although the school wasn’t built with a pandemic in mind, the design, with its large classrooms and airy corridors, will certainly help us to reduce transmission rates.”

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Kay Wood looks around the new school.

Meanwhile, at Barton Park, pupils are set to start from Thursday, with a full time opening next Monday.

Bryony McCraw, head of school, said: “Back in March when lockdown was announced, we didn’t think we’d be opening as we liked but we’re now going to be opening on time, which is terrific.

“We’ve got the absolute luxury of space to work with, as it’s just the early years that will be here.

“One of the positive things I’ve been looking at is that the majority of children coming in will still have been attending private nurseries right up until the summer holidays.

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“During the first term, we will be making sure that the mental health of the children is well, having potentially spent a long time out the system.”

With the Government yet to issue rules dictating that pupils must wear masks, the new schools are in a tricky situation with regards to guidance for students and staff.

Mr Howson said the Government needs to instruct schools one way or the other or allow there to be a degree of local flexibility.

All the schools said they would be following Government guidance.

Mrs McCraw said: “We’ve written our own policies on Covid, and we’re not expecting pupils or teachers to wear masks – if they wanted to, we would support that, but it will very much be following the Government guidance.”

She also confirmed that the school would however be asking parents to wear masks and make use of hand sanitiser stations.

At Whitelands, staff and students will be expected to wear masks when arriving and departing the school, while cleaning routines have been enhanced, with hand sanitisation stations installed.

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Ms Croft said if guidance was to change, it would be ready to offer staff visors and masks.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: “I know all schools and colleges are now making their final preparations to open in September, and we are continuing to do everything in our power to ensure all children can be back in their classrooms safely, as this is the best place for them to be for their education, development and wellbeing.”