Pupils in Prudhoe get 'cheap option' in school closure

A VACANT former middle school was reportedly offered as a temporary site for students at Prudhoe Community High School - only to be rejected by the Government, it has been claimed.

- JAMES ROBINSON

Hexham Middle School closed in 2021, but is just ten miles from the high school. The deputy leader of Northumberland Conservatives has claimed that the county council offered the middle school on Wanless Lane to the Department for Education as a potential solution after the high school was closed due to safety fears over structural issues.

Pupils are currently attending school on Wearside at Sunderland College’s Washington Campus, which is almost twice as far away at 17 miles. School days are currently cut short in order to miss heavy traffic on the A1.

In comparison, there are existing public transport routes by both train and bus between Hexham and Prudhoe. Coun Richard Wearmouth accused the Government of taking the “cheap option”.