Prudhoe school pupils begin first day at Washington base
Students at a school which had to be shut when the building was found to be unsafe have begun their first day at a temporary base about 16 miles (26km) away.Prudhoe Community High School, in Northumberland, was closed on 17 February for up to nine months due to cracks in its upper floor.Pupils will use Sunderland College's Washington Campus for the foreseeable future. They will be bussed from Prudhoe to the site and back again each day.The school's headteacher, Annmarie Moore, said it had been a "team effort" to get them back to face-to-face learning.
Buses will leave at 07:54 BST, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said, arriving in Washington at 08:30.They will then travel back at 14:10 to avoid rush-hour traffic. It is expected they will return to the town at about 14:45.
Cheviot Learning Trust, the academy chain running the school, issued a thanks to the local community following an outpouring of support, as well as Sunderland College, Northumberland County Council and the Department for Education.The trust's chief executive, Alice Witherow, said a "huge amount has been achieved" with a logistical effort involving transport, IT, furniture removals, cleaning and repairs.Investigations into what caused the issue are ongoing. Parents have been told they are likely be completed around Easter.
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