NORTH Oxfordshire’s first free school is fully operational with all buildings completed in time for the new term.

Heyford Park Free School – which opened to students in September 2013 in temporary buildings before moving into the new base 18 months later – now has two fully-operational campuses at the former Upper Heyford US airforce base, near Bicester.

Headteacher David Castles said: “The team really grows from year to year and that is part of the journey. It comes with more opportunities for the children. For example, we have a new teacher who is a keen choir conductor and has launched our own gospel choir.

“Our numbers [of pupils] are really, really good. We are full in the three primary years that are open and our secondary years.

“We have also taken on more staff, so we have a much more specialist curriculum such as once-a-week gymnastics and also some computing for our primary years, which is exciting. We also have a forest school programme for playing outside, team building and learning about our natural world.

“We have all these subjects on site now, which allows our primary children to experience more specialist subjects.”

The all-through school teaches students from age four to 19 and has one site housed in the former officers’ mess in Camp Road and another a short walk away off Darcey Drive.

It now has 270 pupils from the Reception class to Year Nine.

It has also taken on a further 11 staff members this term.

Free schools are state-funded schools set up by parent, teacher, community, business or charity groups outside local authority control and do not need to follow the National Curriculum.

Mr Castles added: “We have also brought in a number of staff. This helps to start developing those GCSE options, which is exciting as it will be our first group of children put towards GCSEs.

“Children are now moving between the two campuses and that is going really well.”

The most recent additions to the school include the full use of the specialism campus off Darcey Drive. It houses sports facilities including a fully equipped gym, technology studios for lessons such as 3D printing and art facilities including its own kiln.

The school is hosting an open day tomorrow from 10am to 4pm.