Hucknall school head blasts county council plans to demolish buildings

Andrew Beckinsale-Yates is head of Broomhill Junior School on Broomhill Road, which is currently having a brand new £10m building built with funding from the Department of Education (DfE).

But Nottinghamshire Council has now decided to demolish two current classrooms on the site which were built only 10 years ago at a believed cost of £750,000.

Mr Beckinsale-Yates says he has been told it is because of falling pupil numbers at the school.

But he stressed that this would not always be the case and that demolishing the buildings which would be needed in the coming years, represented ‘not a very good return for the taxpayer on buildings that were meant to be permanent’.

He said: “I am aware that our roll (of pupil numbers) has dropped recently but it will return, these things are cyclical and what I don’t get is that the Government wants schools to have an inclusion unit and we’ve got one right there.

"We weren’t involved in any of the negotiations, which I think is scandalous, and the only reason the council gave was lack of pupil numbers which I think is really short-sighted.

"We need these buildings and when you consider the depravation we’ve got with in excess of 25 per cent of SEND children, they would really benefit from having that space where they can be taught according to their needs.

"They (the council) might say they can be accomodated in the classroom long-term but that’s not the point, doing this now represents short-sighted thinking.

"And what really makes me cross is the council doing this when just over the way from us is Oak House and what a white elephant that is – way over budget and yet they’re wanting to tear our buildings down.

"It just doesn’t make sense.”

Mr Beckinsale-Yates says he has written to all local councillors, the county council leader and Hucknall MP Michelle Welsh about the issue and added that he hopes ‘common sense and taxpayers’ money will prevail’.

Coun Richard Darrington (Ref), county councillor for Hucknall South, said he was in ‘complete agreement’ with Mr Beckinsale-Yates and would be raising the issue at County Hall.

He said: “I know those buildings well and will be writing to the county council because I agree with him – we cannot let this happen.

"The school needs more space, it needs those buildings and this makes no sense whatsoever.”

Hucknall district councillor Lee Waters (Ash Ind) added: “This decision is wasteful, short-sighted and morally wrong.

"Broomhill School wants to use teaching spaces to support vulnerable children, SEND pupils and families in Hucknall.

"To demolish them without properly listening to the school is unacceptable.

“At a time when inclusion and SEND support is under huge pressure, Nottinghamshire Council should be protecting useful school space, not bulldozing them.

"Hucknall’s children deserve better.”

A county council spokesperson said: "It's very good news that Broomhill Junior School will have a brand new building, funded by the DfE.

"In light of these plans for a new school building, we had to decide whether the two classroom units would still be needed, so work started back in 2024 to carefully consider future pupils numbers, including SEND pupils.

"Costs to repair these classroom units (which would be a minimum of £65,000) and also maintain them was also factored in, given that we have to be practical and look at the school site in the long-term.

"We of course have a responsibility to maintain other school buildings across the county, so we always have to carefully manage budgets.

"Therefore, it was concluded that these units will not be needed in the long-term due to the planned capacity of the new school, which includes an increase of pupils numbers with SEND needs from 58 to 70.

"This recommendation to demolish these two classroom units was made very early on in the planning process, overseen by the DfE, and there were several opportunities for the school to raise any concerns.

"This includes a consultation which took place and several meetings we had with the school throughout the process.

"We have also earmarked the space currently occupied by the units to be a new outdoor play area."

Your Dispatch has contacted the DfE for comment.