OXFORD vaccine creator Dame Sarah Gilbert was the guest of honour as a school celebrated its new multimillion pound home.
Work started at The Swan School in February 2019, with pupils and staff spending the 2019/20 academic year in temporary accommodation next to The Cherwell School.
Pupils and staff were then able to move in to the new building for the last academic year, at Oxford’s first completely new secondary for almost 60 years.
However, due to the pandemic, the move was unable to be marked with a special occasion.
On Saturday, an estimated 2,000 students and parents were able to celebrate at the school’s Marston Ferry Road site.
Headteacher Kay Wood said: “It was very special to be able to finally get together to have a big housewarming party.
“We are really proud of our world-class facilities here and we were desperate to be able to show them to as many people as possible.
“It was particularly nice to be able to show local residents the amazing school at the heart of their community.
“A special day also needs special guests, and we were honoured that Dame Sarah Gilbert agreed to attend.
“Schools are about inspirational people, as well as inspirational settings, and people don’t come much more inspirational than Dame Sarah.”
In addition to getting a look around the site, guests were able to take part in a host of activities, including hovercraft rides and ‘hook a swan’.
The Swan School became the first completely new secondary school in Oxford since 1963 when it opened in 2019.
The school spent 12 months in temporary accommodation, after eventually being granted planning permission in October 2018, following a shock earlier decision to refuse it.
Oxford city councillors were concerned about the access road for the school cutting across a busy cycle path.
The Swan will eventually have capacity for more than 1,200 students, and accepts 180 Year 7 pupils annually.
The first sixth form students were welcomed this month.
The school day at The Swan is longer than at other secondaries, with a later start time of 9.15am and a finish time of 4.35pm.
The late start is to reduce congestion by avoiding a clash with The Cherwell, 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.
The Swan School is part of the River Learning Trust (RLT), which also operates The Cherwell, The Oxford Academy, Gosford Hill School, Wheatley Park School and The Marlborough School.
Cheney School in Headington is poised to join RLT following a consultation.
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