PARENTS are being urged to get behind plans for North Oxfordshire’s first free school and register their interest.

Based at the former US Air Force base at Heyford Park, Upper Heyford, the school would be open to pupils aged four to 18 from Bicester and surrounding villages.

Heyford Park Free School would cater for a minimum of 165 pupils and backers say it would create a third secondary school option for Bicester residents.

Plans are due to be submitted to the Department for Education next month, and if approved the first students could start at the school in September 2013.

The Heyford Trust, a steering group made up of parents and residents from the area, site owners the Dorchester Group, and education consultants Wey Education, was set up to push forward plans for the school.

Dorchester Group executive director Paul Silver said: “The free school would be a fantastic centrepiece at the heart of the growing Heyford Park community.

“We know there is a strong appetite for more schooling in the area and we are creating proposals for a new, vibrant school that truly supports the needs of the local people.

“We are now asking parents in the area to register interest for their children as this is crucial to the progression of plans.

“An opportunity to create a brand new place for educational excellence is rare and we are committed to bringing this to the heart of Upper Heyford.”

The school would be housed in the former Officers' mess, which would be refurbished and extended.

Its website says the benefits of the free school included students being mentored by the same teachers throughout their school life, the potential for flexible hours to fit in with working parents, a strong community focus, and the school would work closely with local industry to build youngsters’ skills.

At the moment children living at Heyford Park have to travel to Bicester or nearby village schools. But the population living at Heyford Park is also set to increase after plans for 1,075 homes were approved.

Development of the 5,000-home Bicester eco-town is also expected to start this year, putting extra pressure on Bicester’s two secondary schools, Bicester Community College and Cooper School, as well as its primaries.

  • Free schools are state-funded schools that are set up by parent, teacher, community, business or charity groups in response to community needs.

They are subject to conventional government checks and performance measures but do not have to follow the National curriculum.

In October, the county’s first free school, the Europa School at Culham, was given the go-ahead to open this year.