Education Secretary visits Tipton St John Primary School

Following a long campaign by local councillors, supported by Simon Jupp, the Department for Education has confirmed that the necessary funding to build the school in a safe location away from its current flood-prone site would come from the government’s School Rebuilding Programme.

Last summer Simon Jupp met with a senior government official in Tipton St John to discuss potential build sites. The new school was granted ‘Group 1’ status under the programme, which is reserved for urgent cases by the government​. Mr Jupp has asked for construction work to begin as soon as possible.

Once complete, the school rebuild is set to deliver greater capacity, with modern facilities and purpose-built classrooms. The Department for Education’s​ preferred new site is Thorne Farm in Ottery St Mary, just over two miles from the existing site. An informal consultation for parents, carers and staff will now take place, with details of the process and assessments of different sites now set to become public.

During Gillian Keegan’s visit she and Mr Jupp discussed the major project alongside Amanda Fulford (Executive Headteacher for the Otter Valley Federation), Sarah Walls (Chair of the Otter Valley Federation Governing Board), Peter Button (Head of Tipton St John Primary School), Richard Power (Diocese of Exeter), and Cllr. Andrew Leadbetter (Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Schools at Devon County Council).

Mr Jupp said: “It was fantastic to bring the Education Secretary to Tipton St John Primary School. The government has given the school’s rebuild priority status as part of the multi-billion-pound School Rebuilding Programme. I wanted the school to remain in the village, but without a suitable site identified in Tipton St John, we must now work towards a deliverable safe new school. I am pleased that the details of the process to choose a new site is now set to become public for the first time. The local community deserve nothing less, and I’ll continue to keep them updated as their Member of Parliament.”

Gillian Keegan said: “I was delighted to visit Tipton St John Primary School with Simon, who has worked very hard to secure funding for a new school which will keep staff and pupils safe. This government’s multi-million-pound School Rebuilding Programme, which has given the project priority status, will deliver a modern, state-of-the-art school away from its current flood-prone site. I really enjoyed meeting with teachers, staff and governors to discuss the massive difference it will make to them.”

Amanda Fulford, Executive Headteacher of the Otter Valley Federation, said: “We appreciated the Education Secretary taking the time to visit our school. We are committed to providing the very best education for the local children and will be completing a public consultation this summer to gather the views of our community.

“The children and staff of Tipton St John School are deserving of a new school building which provides a bright and spacious learning environment, free from flood risk, in which all children and staff can flourish.”