New primary school opening in Smith's Wood

Nov 25 2009 by Tony Collins, Birmingham Mail

A CONTROVERSIAL school is due to be formally opened tomorrow following of a major education shake-up.

Smith’s Wood Primary has opened the doors of its new £7 million building on the site of the old Kingfisher Primary School, in Kingfisher Drive, Smith’s Wood.

Solihull Council agreed in March to close Kingfisher Primary before merging the school with nearby Bosworth Wood Primary to form a new combined primary. The approval came despite fierce opposition from parents of Kingfisher pupils, who staged a sit-in at the school and even took their fight to the House of Commons in a bid to keep their school’s independence.

The new Smith’s Wood Primary will now be officially opened tomorrow with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

New headteacher John Talbot said a huge amount of work was undertaken over the summer to bring the schools of Bosworth Wood and Kingfisher together and to ensure everything was ready.

He said that, although there was initially some opposition to the creation of the new school, support from the majority of parents had been extremely positive.

Mr Talbot added: “The challenge to set up a new school in a limited time was huge. Pupils, parents, staff and governors, along with the local authority, worked to ensure a great start.”