Completion of Prudhoe High School investigations 'imminent' as councillor calls for detailed report

Engineers are working to determine the cause of cracks that appeared in the structure of Prudhoe High School in February.

The building, which only opened in 2016, has been closed for almost four months, with pupils currently educated at the Sunderland College campus in Washington 16 miles away.

The Cheviot Learning Trust academy chain that runs the school has said the completion of the investigations will allow plans to be formulated for the repair of the school.

A statement from the trust reads: “We are working with a team of engineers who are carrying out investigations. The completion of these is imminent and we will then be able to update on how the building can be repaired. This will allow us to plan for September.”

The Government has said it hopes to return pupils to face-to-face learning on site as soon as possible.

A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: “This government inherited a school estate in dire need of repair, but we are committed to fixing the foundations for staff and pupils, turning the page on drift and neglect.

“We have worked closely with Prudhoe Community High School and the Cheviot Learning trust to return students to face to face learning at the earliest opportunity.

“We are continuing to work with the school in the trust in next steps.”

But Coun Guy Renner-Thompson, the Conservative cabinet member for education at Northumberland County Council, said parents needed answers now.

He said: “Parents and the council have waited too long for further information about the school. The Department for Education needs to release the detailed report on the condition of the building.

“The school building is still under warranty. It shouldn’t cost the taxpayer anything to put right.

“We do still believe that the former Hexham Middle School was a more suitable solution than bussing children to Washington.”

The council has said it offered the former middle school to the DfE as a temporary site for the school, but it was turned down. The middle school on Wanless Lane, which closed in 2021, is ten miles from Prudhoe.

The Department for Education has not commented on reports it was offered the former HMS site as an alternative.