Planning new school places

School Place Planning

The Wokingham Borough School Places Strategy 2024/25 to 2029/30 was approved by the Council’s Executive on 26th September 2024.

The strategy assesses the sufficiency of education provision over this period; with options to address likely shortfalls. 

Summarised by phase:

For child care and early years education the council does not envisage a shortfall in provision that will require council action.

For the primary sector, the Borough has surplus capacity for the younger age groups (Key Stage 1), but balanced provision for older age groups. Shinfield is an exception, with rising demand reflecting the impact of housebuilding locally. Long-planned provision can address this issue. 

For the secondary sector, the Borough has seen rising demand for Year 7 places, reflecting the arrival of peak birth numbers (around 2012/13) and migration into the Borough (driven by new housing and migration into established residential areas). The current plan of action with planned school-by-school provision is set out.

The post-16 focus is on 6th form provision. Although the rising demand seen in the secondary Year 7 rolls will in time reach the Borough’s sixth forms, the new Bohunt Wokingham sixth form, and likely capacity in a number of the borough’s schools sixth forms, indicate that there is no immediate need for additional provision.

For the longer term new education infrastructure will be required to serve proposed housing schemes that may be incorporated in the final Borough Local Plan.

It is intended that the strategy will be reviewed annually.

Special Education Needs

Two new special schools to serve the borough are under development by the DfE.

Resourced provision at Loddon and Radstock primary schools in Earley has been approved and opened this September.