Hazlewood Primary School in Wideopen, North Tyneside nearly three years on – still in disrepair. In February 2024, issues with the concrete in its ceilings emerged, and the news only got worse from there. Since the month of September started, students have been taking classes in makeshift huts while the school is reopened after undergoing urgent renovations. Even with these precautions, the school’s modern kitchen and dining hall remain unused. Consequently, students have to take their meals in a large tent, with food brought from off-site sources.
It’s understandable that parents of students at Hazlewood Primary would be upset at the lack of action after all this time. They are deeply worried and dissatisfied as to how our attempts to address their grievances. Parent Jo Lowry shared her annoyance, underlining a feeling of being left behind.
"We feel like we've had to fight for everything. We're a year down the line, and the kids are still eating in a marquee. It's really not good enough and we feel extremely let down by the council." – Jo Lowry
North Tyneside Council has gone to great lengths to ensure Hazlewood Primary School is reopened. Director of Resources, Jon Ritchie, is spearheading this effort and the excitement is building. The council itself has committed more than £2 million to address structural issues at Hazlewood. They’re actually working on these same concrete-related problems at two additional schools. Despite these efforts, progress has been slow, a fact that continues to weigh heavily on these students and parents.
Ritchie understood that these arrangements are interim. He noted the council’s ongoing work to engage with provincial and federal entities, and find a longer-term resolution.
"While this is a temporary solution, we continue to lobby the Department for Education for a longer term resolution for the school building." – Jon Ritchie
The Department for Education has not stepped in. Because of these complexities, they don’t view the structural issues at Hazlewood Primary as within their purview. This position has led to widespread condemnation from the chair of the school’s Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), Rob Mathieson.
"The Department for Education don't feel like this is a problem they have to fix." – Rob Mathieson
"They don't want to visit the school, don't want to contact us about it." – Rob Mathieson
Mathieson advocates for a collaborative approach between the council and the Department for Education to devise a comprehensive plan for the school's future.
"The council need to come together with the Department for Education to come up with a grand plan of what they're going to do with the school." – Rob Mathieson
