Councillors to discuss next steps for new secondary school in Preston
Councillors will be updated on plans to build a new secondary school in North Preston this week.
Last October, cabinet agreed to pursue plans for a new secondary school on the land North of Maxy Lane, which would deliver 600 school places in Preston.
Prior to this, the land had not been available due to an ongoing reserved matters planning application with Preston City Council. However, cabinet moved quickly to act on new information that indicated that the site could be coming forward quicker than originally thought, to ensure this option remained on the table.
Shortly after this information came to light, Preston City Council approved the reserved matters planning application and since then, officers have been actively working with the city council, the landowners and the housing developer Taylor Wimpey to facilitate the transfer of land to the county council.
Following a feasibility study and other work, initial designs have been created for a secondary school on the Maxy Lane site, which are deliverable. Alongside this, work has also continued to prepare for a new secondary school on the former Tulketh High School site as an alternative location.
On Thursday 6 March, cabinet will be asked to approve the continued development of the Maxy Lane site as the preferred site for the provision of a new four form entry (600 place) secondary school in Preston. Should the recommendation be accepted, officers will continue to work closely with Preston City Council, the landowners and developers to secure the site.
Cllr Jayne Rear, cabinet member for Education and Skills, said:
"While we do not currently own the Maxy Lane site, it remains our preferred option, and we know from listening to our residents that it is also their preferred location.
"Delivering a new school within this timeframe will be difficult, and every effort is being made to progress with all aspects to advance this work.
"Given the challenges, it's important that we keep our options open, which is why we will continue to explore the feasibility of the Tulketh site.
"We are also actively exploring temporary solutions that will ensure education provision will be provided at our chosen location for September 2027, should the delivery of the main site not be completed on time."