A scheme to invest £169million in 12 schools across Liverpool has been approved in an attempt to maintain the high standards set in recent years.
The planned investment was one of the key pledges of Mayor Joe Anderson when he won the mayoral election and it will see £135million invested in a dozen secondary, primary and special schools.
Another £34million will be used to help other schools that have not benefitted from schemes such as Building Schools for the Future.
Councillor Jane Corbett, Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, told JMU Journalism: “80% of schools in Liverpool have been graded good or outstanding by Ofsted and we are way above the national average for getting five A-C grade GCSEs. This project gives us the chance to build on it.
“We are hoping that the schools will have facilities to support families in the wider community as well as helping students. An example of this would be computers with internet access as not all people have readily accessible broadband. 80% of all vacancies are online so it could help with increasing the number of students enrolled.”
A key element of the scheme is to maximise the spending on local contractors to encourage financial growth in the city. This has been done with Notre Dame Catholic College and the intention is to continue it with the other 11 schools.
Councillor Corbett told JMU Journalism: “Notre Dame will share the Everton Park Sports Centre as we look to avoid duplicating sports facilities in the area whilst maximising its efficiency.
“The plan is to support Liverpool businesses by employing to work on the school projects so that we can create new jobs and apprenticeships. The investment makes the schools flexible so that they can respond to future demands and trends. Most of all, it is an investment in our children.”