Two into one may go, say leaders of latest countyschoolmerger

"We held a consultation with parents and pupils to see what theywanted for the new uniform," Miss Williams said. "Parents obviouslywere concerned about additional costs, so in order to reduce thatwe are giving every child one free sweatshirt. "If the children had had their way they would be coming to schoolin Harry Potter capes." Miss Williams added: "We wanted to retain elements of both schools'uniforms, so what we have decided upon is navy sweatshirts with thegold school logo, yellow polo tops and grey trousers or skirts. Inthe summer girls can revert to blue check dresses, and the boyswill just wear their polo tops with Trousers and Shorts." The school will be allowing a 12-month grace period, where pupilscan continue to wear the uniform of either the infant or juniorschool. Parents with children preparing to start school this September willbe able to purchase the new uniform from now. The amalgamated school will accommodate 630 pupils - thought to bethe biggest primary school in the county. Though the infant andprimary schools are next to each other, some building works willhave to take place to blend the two together. Mr Hutchinson said: "Work will start in the summer holidays on anew entrance, which will be at the site of the current juniorschool entrance. "Then there will be a new administration block and re-organisationof the classrooms. The local authority has allocated ￡1million over the next three years to pay for the buildingimprovements. "In the long term we will have a new classroom block built and weare working with architects now on the plans." The new primary school will also accommodate 70 members of staff. "There have been no redundancies with the merger of the schools,"Miss Williams said. "All the teachers have been accommodated, andthis offers them a great chance for career progression." She added: "We will be having some team-building days in the comingweeks and months, so that everyone has the chance to get to knoweach other better." The aim of the temporary governing body and the headteacher is toensure the merger is as seamless and unnoticeable to the pupils aspossible. "Of course the children will notice that they are all together andthe physical changes, such as their uniform and the building works,but we don't want them to see any other difference," Mr Hutchinsonsaid. "We don't want the pupils to feel any disturbance." The school is hosting an open evening on Thursday, June 19, from3.30pm to 6pm when parents and guests are invited to drop in, speakto the headteacher and governors and view the new uniforms.