Construction is about to start on a £4m new school building to house Christleton International Studio on the same campus as Queen’s Park High School in Handbridge .
This new type of school will be built in the centre of the high school frontage on the footprint of a 1960s block which will be partly demolished and remodelled.
Plans were unanimously approved by Cheshire West and Chester Council in February.
The final funding agreement has now been signed off and the build contract awarded to BAM with hoardings due to go up soon.
Christleton International Studio actually opened last September within a vacant wing of Queen’s Park High as a temporary measure. Both schools are managed as separate entities but come under the umbrella of Christleton Learning Trust, along with Christleton High School .
The studio school, which will ultimately accommodate 320 students, will move into its new home at the end of the 2018 autumn term. A consultation is ongoing around a change of name, which should please those confused by its current moniker which defies the geographical location.
Principal Kate Ryan, who is just back in work after only five weeks’ maternity leave, said: “We are delighted with the building and drew our inspiration for it from the co-working offices of Google , Apple and also from schools such as Orestad Gymnasium in Copenhagen and AltSchool in Palo Alto, California.
“We are hoping it will promote the transition from school to workplace or university whichever direction our students decide to take. There are a mix of class spaces, lecture rooms, open co-working areas and specialist spaces for technology, Makerspace, Art and on the top floor amazing industry standard labs which have far reaching views across the city and North Wales.”
Christleton International Studio is state-funded but is not like a traditional school and not only because of the different types of working spaces but because of links to business and its international outlook.
The studio, which is for all abilities, draws students from across Cheshire , Wirral and North Wales. It is run in partnership with Bank of America Merrill Lynch and other multinationals based in and around Chester.
The school day is also longer, from 8.30am until 4.30pm, with doors open from 7.30am.
As well as GCSE courses for 14-16-year-olds, there is an International Baccalaureate Career Programme aimed at 16-19 year-olds, which is an internationally accepted qualification as an alternative to A-Levels and providing entry into higher education.
However, questions have been raised about the sustainability of the studio by free school critic David Plunkett, a retired county council education officer, who discovered there were just 85 students enrolled for the initial intake instead of the predicted 120.
Principal Ms Ryan remains upbeat: “We will double in size in September and our team is growing to meet this need. On our website you can see the new teachers who are joining. The recruitment process has been long and rigorous given that we received hundreds of application for some positions.
“We have chosen teachers who are energetic, passionate about their subjects and have a global vision to share with our students. During Easter, two of our students completed medical work experience overseas in India and China and we are looking for some final placements for our summer programmes in Chester.”
She concluded: “We are hosting our first open day of the year in June and are enjoying meeting many more students and families as our evening student information sessions are often filled quickly. The response from the local and international community has been wonderful and we look forward to welcoming the community of Chester to our new building later in 2018.
“We are always looking for ways that our facilities to contribute to local life and welcome ideas from community groups.”
