Somerset school canteen enlargement to ease overcrowding

Secondary pupils in parts of Somerset should face less overcrowding in their school canteens in future.

Three schools in Taunton and Wellington are set to receive bigger kitchens and dining rooms.

They are Monkton Wood Academy, Pyrland School in Taunton and Court Fields School in Wellington.

Somerset Council says the expansion is necessary to avoid schools having to limit the number of pupils they can have on roll.

A council report said all three schools have "dining capacity and kitchen facilities which are significantly below the [Department for Education] benchmark for schools of their size".

"There is a concern that the academy trusts may look to reduce admission numbers to reflect the capacity of the dining, which would be hugely challenging for the LA [local authority] at a time when secondary aged pupils in Taunton and Wellington are increasing," the report said.

Somerset Council said the current situation was having "a knock-on impact on pupils, their ability to engage in learning and the wider performance of the school".

"A positive dining experience without long queues and crowded halls means that children fully benefit from their break times having plenty of time to eat and relax with friends.

"The impact on behaviour and standard should not be underestimated," the report said.

The new dining facilities will be paid for in part using money housing developers have to give the council when they build in a local area, called Section 106 contributions, as well as a grant from the Department for Education.

Somerset Council, which declared a "financial emergency" last year, said no council funds would be required for the projects.

The authority agreed to go out to tender for construction companies to complete the work required, but the expected costs have been kept confidential.

Monkton Wood Academy, which was called Heathfield School until December 2023, has 1,350 students and Pyrland School, formerly called Taunton Academy, has 1,050 pupils.

They are two of the four secondary schools that serve Taunton and the surrounding area.