11/8/2005 - Cumbria County Council secures £30 million for Carlisle secondary education

Cumbria County Council learned this week that the DfES has agreed in principle to provide £30m to develop secondary education in Carlisle after the devastating affects of the January floods.

Following a submission from the county council outlining ideas on how to recover from the floods ministers consider the circumstances to be exceptional and agree in principle further investment is justified. 

This agreement is subject to the following:

1. Our plans need to have broad agreement across a range of partners based on consultation and consensus

2. Some local investment will be required

3. The proposals need to be part of a wider education strategy for Cumbria 

No final decisions on the options available to the council have been made. Over the next few months the county council will be consulting with a broad range of partners on both the overall vision for education in the county and the specific issues for Carlisle.

County councillor Tim Stoddard, Leader of Cumbria County Council said:

"This is a tremendous opportunity to take a look at secondary education in the city and shape a better educational future for generations to come. This is money we would not other wise have had and it means we can tackle the issues in the city starting from first principle. The DfES decision has been made 'in principle' A final decision will be made by Ministers in the autumn, however, this will allow consultation to begin.

"We have no fixed views about what the final plan will look like but we will be working with everyone involved in education to make sure we come up with a package which will deliver the best outcomes for the for future generation of youngsters in Carlisle."

Work undertaken for a review of secondary provision in Carlisle will form part of a wider, long term strategy for Cumbria as a whole. The county council's cabinet will receive a report on 7th September on the way forward for this approach.