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| Pupils settle in to life at Academy
They have been consulted, informed, and where possible even involved in its design and development, so the hopes of the new pupils of Hope Academy were high when it finally opened its doors to them on 9th September. And importantly, it didn’t disappoint.
Following an investment of £33 million, St.Helens’ groundbreaking new school, which replaces both Newton Community High School and St Aelred’s Catholic Technology College, drew gasps of awe as pupils excitedly explored their new surroundings
Including innovative outdoor learning areas, classroom balconies, science gardens and state of the art equipment throughout, pupils were clearly happy that the wait was finally over. |
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| “Hope Academy represents an investment in education provision that St.Helens and its young people will benefit from greatly” said John Gannon, Hope Academy Principal. “It has been built to high sustainability standards, with wind turbines, solar power and a biomass boiler just some of the technologies that may see us crowned the most Sustainable school in the country, once the building receives its official BREEAM rating which we expect later this year.”
Pupils of all ages chatted excitedly as they explored their new and impressive surroundings, which took contractor Willmott Dixon two years to build. “We are very grateful to the team at Willmott Dixon who did an outstanding job” John Gannon enthused. |
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| Hope Academy will now look to engage potential future pupils and Sixth Form students with a series of open evenings and the publication of its 2012 prospectus. “We will be holding an Open Evening on Thursday 29th September for Year 5 and 6 pupils and their families, during which attendees can tour the new Academy and talk directly to staff.
A second Open Evening, on Thursday 10th November, will also be held for students considering joining the Academy’s Sixth Form. We expect a high level of interest from potential new pupils and students as the reputation of the Academy grows” Mr Gannon explained. |
