Conservative-led West Sussex County Council has let local families down again.
For years the Conservatives have promised to open a new school for the Brookleigh housing development. The Conservative County Council's “pause” on the Bedelands Academy upsets the planned critical infrastructure for the 3500 new homes in the Northern Arc. The growing population of our area desperately needs infrastructure. Residents deserve certainty on school places being available for their children.
In March of 2024, amid rising costs, Conservatives on the County Council promised that the academy would only see a 12 month delay. Despite requests by local Liberal Democrat Councillors, the Conservatives failed to provide assurances about the future of Bedelands Academy.
Failure to deliver the Bedelands Academy is going to put additional pressure other local schools, with Burgess Hill Academy slated to take an additional three classes of pupils.
Liberal Democrat MP for Mid Sussex Alison Bennett has condemned the ‘pause’, commenting:
“This is about trust. Residents were promised a school. The County Council says it is protecting the land, but history tells us these commitments can slip away. Just look at the decade long fight to get the Conservatives to honour their promise to complete Woodlands Meed."
“This pause raises as many questions as it answers, and Conservative County Councillors must explain exactly how they will guarantee that children in Burgess Hill get the school places they need, when they need them.”
The local Liberal Democrats are calling for West Sussex County Council to take these immediate steps to begin earning back the confidence of Burgess Hill residents:
Conservatives on West Sussex County Council are delaying the construction of the Bedelands Academy. Liberal Democrats are fighting to make sure that Burgess Hill gets a new school in the Brookleigh Development.
Local Liberal Democrat Councillors Raise Alarm Over Two-Year Delay to New Burgess Hill Secondary School
“Pause” must not mean “Cancel”: Lib Dem MP calls for answers from Conservative County Council on delayed Burgess Hill School
At a meeting of the Performance & Finance Scrutiny Committee on 8th March, West Sussex County Council councillors were informed of a 12 month delay in the opening of Bedelands Academy, the secondary school promised for the northern arc in Burgess Hill.
