All Hallows R.C High: seven-year-old Salford school plans to expand to meet demand

A high school in Salford built in 2015 is already looking at expansion plans to meet student place demands.

All Hallows R.C High School has submitted a planning application to Salford City Council for a larger playground, phase one of the expansion plan.

This decision was made as the facilities do not meet the requirements for the current number of students at the school. The Eccles Old Road site agreed to take in an extra 25 Year 7 students per year back in March.

The fenced off grassed area bounded by the existing playground, the car park and the playing fields to the north of the school building will be replaced with a new tarmac surfacing.

An area to the north-east of the existing playground has also been deemed suitable to create additional playground space. This area sits at the bottom of the grassed bank between the playground and the all-weather pitch – an underused area of the specialist school of business, enterprise and sports.

“The proposed playground works detailed in this application are the first stage of the proposed expansion of the school to accommodate additional child places,” a design and access statement said. “The existing area of hard standing used as a play area struggles to meet the requirements of the school with current pupil numbers.”

Salford City Council decided that in order to achieve this and to allow the increased cohort of pupils move through the school, there will be a need to carry out internal alterations to support general teaching and specialist teaching areas. In addition to this there would be a need to expand the existing dining area.

In order to support the immediate demand, the additional capacity created will also provide the local authority with an option for a more permanent solution if required. This expansion will come as a surprise to nearby residents given the school was only constructed relatively recently, with works completed in September 2014.

It was officially opened by the Right Reverend John Arnold, Bishop of Salford on April 29, 2015. Following a council briefing back in March, Councillor Jim Cammell, lead member for children and young people’s services, explained that Salford’s economic boom was leading to more families moving into the city.

“Over the last four years our secondary schools have created 467 extra Year 7 places across the city and will add another 172 places for children starting high school this September’s intake,” he said.

“Council forecasts indicate a need for another 490 Year 7 places between 2023 and 2027. The new 750 place Star Academy in Little Hulton, which is being delivered by the government and is expected to open in September 2023, will have an intake of 150 pupils per year and will help meet some of this growth.

“We will continue to work closely with academies and schools to identify ways to provide more places over the next five years.”