High School plans - consultation meetings announced

A second meeting will be held at the school on Wednesday, March 26.

Residents in Bexhill will be able to hear more about the exciting plans for the new High and ask questions about the building project.

At the consultation evenings, residents will be invited to meet the design team, representatives from the county council and the school, and other stakeholders.

The two events in the main hall at Gunters Lane, follow the distribution of a newsletter to keep the local community up-to-date with plans.

The newsletter and the consultation meetings aim to update residents on the proposals for the new school and answer the most frequently asked questions about the project.

Working in partnership with the school, East Sussex County Council is building the state-of-the-art new facility with 33m from the Government's Building Schools for the Future programme and 4m from the council's own funds.

Cllr Keith Glazier, lead county cabinet member for children's and adults' services, said: "We want to do all we can to keep local residents informed about this project and involved with it as it progresses. It is an extremely exciting project to build not only a brand new high school for the town but a real community resource."

At the consultation residents will be able to learn more about the project, how it came about, how the new school will be developed, what the benefits will be both for students and the wider community, how students' schooling will be safeguarded while building work is carried out, and what the anticipated timings are for the various stages of the project.

The current intention is to submit a planning application for the new school in the spring/early summer.

Subject to approval it is hoped that building work can start later in the year with a target completion date of September 2010.

Designs for both the school and associated vocational Skills centre at the two sites at Gunters Lane and Down Road are currently being developed.

Electronic copies of the "Building for the Future" newsletter are available on the school buildings pages of the East Sussex County Council website, www.eastsussex.gov.uk and through the school's website at www.bexhillhigh.e-sussex.sch.uk