Primary Academy Opens In Yate

Yate's youngsters have become the first in the district to

attend an academy status primary school.

Woodlands Primary School, on Sundridge Park, was legally

closed in the last week of the summer holidays and reopened this week as the

primary phase of neighboring Yate International Academy.

The school has retained the Woodlands name but will now be

known as Woodlands Primary Phase, Yate International Academy.

It means Yate International Academy, which is part of The

Ridings' Federation linked with Winterbourne International Academy, is the

first all-through academy of its kind in Bristol and South Gloucestershire.

The academy will cater for four to 18-year-olds with a

possibility of expanding further to include a nursery.

Dr Rob Gibson, chief executive of The Ridings' Federation

of Academies, said: "The first four to 18 all-through academy in South

Gloucestershire marks the start of a new era for all the children in Yate.

"The academy will certainly provide significant, new

and exciting opportunities in order to raise standards further now and into the

future."

The link was widely welcomed by parents and teachers who

said it would offer continuity for pupils transferring from primary to

secondary school.

This is a great achievement for the Academy network in

Yate. It should bring a wealth of opportunity and stability to the youngsters

attending.