'Our school is top class' say Charlton-on-Otmoor kids (From Oxford Mail)

'Our school is top class' say Charlton-on-Otmoor kids

9:30am Thursday 9th September 2010 in

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GOING back to school may have been a struggle for many children, but not pupils at one Oxfordshire primary.

For the past 17 years, youngsters going through years one to six at Charlton-on-Otmoor Primary School, near Bicester, have had to use temporary cabins as classrooms.

But this year they have returned to a new £1.2m school building – funded by Oxfordshire County Council.

Chairman of the school’s governors Rachel Foord said the building had been long overdue. She said: “For the past 17 years, many of our children have not had proper classrooms.

“The original building, used by reception pupils, dates back to the 1800s but was too small once the number of pupils grew. Yet the cabins were supposed to be a temporary fix only.”

The building was funded by the council’s capital spending programme – which is now embarking on cost-cutting for other school programmes.

It took just under 12 months to complete.

Mrs Foord said: “This is the end of a long road, and it will make such a difference to the school.”

The school’s PTA has raised more than £30,000 for new furniture, computer equipment, and a library full of books for the building.

Val Bending, acting headteacher, said the past year had been tough for the school. She said: “We’ve had so many problems. Pipes in the cabins burst in January and flooded the school, so I had to teach my class in the hall for weeks.

“It was starting to get to the point where we were asking ourselves how much longer the cabins would last. They were decaying and the floors were dipping.”

Mrs Bending said the new classrooms were light, airy and would make the whole school happier.

She said: “It means ever such a lot to the pupils and staff to have their own classrooms.

“I don’t know what we would have done if we hadn’t got the funding for this.

“A lot of schools are in the same boat as we were, and I’m so thankful the money came through for us.”

Pupils have been busy enjoying their new surroundings on their first week back.

Year six pupil Katherine Hill, 10, said: “It is really good. There are really cool views and it isn’t damp and old like the old buildings.

“The other classes used to smell quite bad. And now we have a big interactive whiteboard – which everyone can see.”

Kara Selby, 10, agreed: “The old classrooms were smelly, and were damp. I feel a lot safer in the new building.”

And Edward Hutson, 10, added: “The new school is much better and brighter.

“It’ll make me enjoy coming to school even more in the morning. They look great!”

rpope@oxfordmail.co.uk