Parents upset after plans for new school cancelled

Plans for a second primary school on a Rotherham estate have been formally shelved despite dozens of children being refused places at the existing school.

When the original outline planning application for the Waverley estate was granted in 2011 it included proposals for 3,890 homes and two new primary schools.

However, Rotherham Council has now removed the second school from the development agreement as fewer homes have been built than expected.

The move has prompted objections from 83 parents and a local councillor who said the existing primary school was already oversubscribed.

Waverley Primary Academy opened in 2020 and was later expanded to accommodate 210 new places, bringing total capacity to 675 pupils.

Six new classrooms, two libraries and a dedicated nursery were built to boost capacity.

However, parents have said the school is not big enough for the size of the estate, with 49 applications rejected this year, 29 of which were for children living within the catchment area.

They said houses built in earlier phases of the development were further from the school and, as a result, less likely to get a space, even though residents have lived there longer.

Waverley councillor Jamie Baggaley said: "Residents have heard the promises for years, yet mainly feel their lived experience tells a very different story."

He added that residents had been "sold a dream of being able to walk to their local primary school" but 86 children from the catchment area had their applications refused between 2022-2024 until the school was extended in 2025.

Waverley Community Council also objected to the decision to drop plans for a second school, saying it "was very disappointing", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Officers said a second school would only be required if the estate exceeded 3,250 homes, but the site will now only deliver 3,022 homes when complete.

Jane Beckett representing Harworth, the regeneration company behind the Waverley development, told a meeting the changes had been made following eight years work with Rotherham and Sheffield councils.

She said: "We are really empathetic with the residents of Waverley because we know this submission was unfortunately timed with the school place announcement."

A nursery, veterinary surgery and restaurants have opened on the Olive Lane "high street" along with a community centre.

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