THE good news that Sheet Primary School was to have three new classrooms to replace its 30-year-old delapidated temporary ones has turned to frustration after delays in setting a date for the start of the building work.

Head teacher Keith Brentnall heard nearly a year ago that the long-awaited project to rid the school of its leaking classrooms with pillars supporting the sagging ceilings, and only outdated paraffin heaters to heat them was to be included in bids under the government's "new deals for school".

But although the long-awaited project to demolish the old classrooms and build three new classrooms, a tutorial room, a new head teacher's office and staffroom, refurbished kitchen, more storage space and a toilet for disabled people was given the go-ahead in March, Mr Brentnall has still not heard when the builders will move in.

And he is disappointed that although Sheet Primary was near the top of a priority list of 150 schools within the county, other schools further down the list appeared to have jumped the queue.

"There has been all sorts of hesitation and problems," Mr Brentnall told The Herald this week.

"We were told verbally that work would start on August 22 but although we have tried to get an official start date, we have heard nothing."

The temporary classrooms, he said, were "in a dreadful state and deteriorating all the time."

And he said that everyone concerned with the school – parents, teachers and governors alike – were becoming more and more dejected by the delays.

"We appreciate that this is a difficult site and that everybody is very busy, but in the meantime it is holding up our children's education."

Mr Brentnall said that the school "felt it was in limbo".

"We have done everything to raise the standards of the school, moved in laptops and computers in line with Ofsted recommendations, produced brilliant SATS results with children gaining 95 per cent in mathematics, English and science, and the new buildings are the icing on the cake."

He now claims that people "have been dragging their feet" over the building scheme.

"We feel like anybody moving home – we're all packed up and ready, but still don't know what's happening."

Mr Brentnall said that the school had originally hoped to have the new buildings in place

r Continued on Page 6 of this week's Herald