New primary school opens

THE final part a 30 million package for schools in the Peacehaven area was celebrated on Friday with the opening of the new Telscombe Cliffs Primary School.

Local children's author and illustrator Hilda Offen performed the opening ceremony in the presence of students, teachers and parents.

Also attending was the chairman of East Sussex County Council, Michael Tunwell, lead cabinet member for education Rupert Simmons, and Peacehaven and Telscombe town, district and county council members. A time capsule was buried and a tree planted to mark the occasion.

Cllr Simmons said: 'The official opening of this school is fantastic news and marks the last stage of the 30m package of school improvements for the area. This is a marvellous achievement by all concerned and the local community will now reap the rewards.'

The school has been rebuilt in phases at a cost of 4.5 million, is designed to take 560 pupils aged five to 11 and has a 25-place nursery. It is light and spacious and each classroom has an outside teaching space and at least three state of the art computers.

The school is part of an education package which includes the new Peacehaven secondary school, the replacement of Hoddern Junior, the rebuilding of Peacehaven Infants and a new nursery at Meridian Primary.

It was developed under the Government's Private Finance Initiative which combines the financing, building and maintenance of the schools by a private consortium called Peacehaven Schools Ltd.