Roman remains revealed on Houghton Regis site set for new school
14 Jun 2022• A positive spin is being put on yesterday's news that the new Houstone School in Houghton Regis won't be ready in September as originally hoped.
• Read the briefing below from Central Bedfordshire Council.
Completion of the new state-of-the-art Houstone School in Houghton Regis will be delayed after the archaeological discovery of Roman, Neolithic and early Bronze Age remains dating back 4,500 years, Central Bedfordshire Council has revealed.
Advantage Schools multi-academy trust will run the new school which is the first new secondary school to built in the town by Central Bedfordshire Council. Houstone is a fitting name for the school as it is the historical name for the area, as recorded in the Domesday Book. The school was hoping to have its doors open to over 200 pupils from the start of the 2022/23 academic year in September.
Children and young people will now be temporarily educated in the former University Technical College(UTC) building on the same Kingsland Campus site. This is being refurbished to accommodate classes from September until spring 2023 when Houstone School is expected to be ready.
The national shortage of building materials, and a now resolved drainage concern, have been among the challenging modern-day issues around the construction. More historically significant has been the uncovering of ancient settlement activity and human remains.
The discoveries include:
A 'ring-ditch' which is part of a late Neolithic/early Bronze Age barrow or funerary monument, around 4,500 years old.
A human burial. The skeleton was placed in a crouched position within a pit near the barrow, suggesting it is likely to be of a similar date. This will be confirmed by radiocarbon dating. Specialist analysis will determine the individual’s sex, age at death, and whether they were suffering from any diseases.
A line of 11 Bronze Age pits, around 4,000 years old, which represent an ancient boundary stretching for at least 30 metres. They contained fragments of Bronze Age pottery and animal bone.
The archaeological discoveries add to historic artefacts previously found at the nearby Linmere housing development, which together give an insight to 8,000 years of human life in Houghton Regis.The UTC building will be used until the new school is ready.
Central Bedfordshire Council Executive Member for Families, Education and Children, Cllr Sue Clark, said, “We’re very sorry that Houstone School will not be able to open in September as we’d planned, but we have worked hard to ensure pupils will be able to begin their secondary school education right next door, in a refurbished University Technical College building while we work hard to deliver the brand-new school building. I am sorry there have been a number of issues outside of our control that have held up progress on the new school, including significant archaeological discoveries.”
Talking of the discoveries, Albion Archaeology Project Manager, Wesley Kier, said: “The results of the archaeological investigations at Houstone, together with those of the investigations carried out elsewhere within the Linmere development, provide a unique and regionally significant insight into the ancient land-use and landscape of the area which stretches back at least 8,000 years.”
Stuart Lock, Chief Executive of Advantage Schools, said: “The new school building is going to be fantastic and we are going to provide pupils with the highest quality of education. But a school is much more than a building, and we will take our high expectations, academic ethos, excellent behaviour standards and be ready to run this school in temporary accommodation in September 2022.
“The principal, Elizabeth English, and myself have visited the UTC building and it is of a high standard. Pupils will get a good deal from September, and we look forward to moving into our brand-new building early in 2023.”
Elizabeth English, Houstone School Principal Designate, said: “I’m currently working with the Trust team to ensure the education we deliver in our temporary accommodation is matched to the standard we will deliver in the new building and all of our pupils will thrive at school.
“Whilst I share families’ disappointment over the delay to the build, I’m confident we will run a fantastic school at the UTC until the move to our new home is complete. I will work with our pupils and families to ensure the transition into both the UTC and new building will be smooth and successful. I look forward to inviting you in to see our school in action from September.”
• Further reading on the archaeological discoveries elsewhere in Houghton Regis:
Albion Archaeology investigates Linmere siteOpening Delay for Houstone School
13 Jun 2022 By Cllr Toni Ryan, CBC ward councillor for Parkside, Houghton RegisUnfortunately, I was told today that Houstone School, the new secondary school being built on the Kingsland Campus in Houghton Regis, scheduled to open in September will see delays on completion. Central Bedfordshire Council (CBC) has confirmed the children will be asked to continue to use the UTC until September 2023.
I raised a few months ago whether CBC was on track and was promised there were no delays and that the build will be serving our community by this coming September.
I can imagine this is very upsetting for a lot of parents and children. I will continue to keep my dialogue with parents and CBC. If you have any concerns please let me know.
Statement from CBC
"Regrettably, this completion date is now not possible, for reasons I will outline, but I am pleased to inform you that we have been able to secure from the Department for Education temporary use of the vacant University Technical College (UTC) building, also on the Kingsland Campus, in the meantime.
"This means that over 200 pupils enrolled at Houstone School can be educated on the same site from September until spring 2023, when the new secondary school building is expected to be ready for its first classes. Parents and carers of those children who have already been offered a place at Houstone School do not need to do anything further.
"The college was closed in 2016 so is still in good condition and was already designed as an educational facility. However, we’re taking the opportunity to refurbish parts of it, in order that children can receive the best possible education in the most suitable environment possible.
"There are a number of factors behind this change to the build programme, including materials delays and shortages affecting the construction industry across the UK, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, plus some now resolved drainage issues near the boundary of the school.
"Another reason for the delay was that standard archaeological investigations, which are required at construction projects such as Houstone School, uncovered Roman, Neolithic and Bronze Age remains, some dating back to around 4,500 years ago.
"This includes an ancient burial site where human remains were found, plus a significant amount of pottery, other fascinating artefacts and settlement activity. These discoveries mark the site as one of historical significance, far older than the Domesday Book, which records the historical name for the Houghton Regis as Houstone, from which the school takes its name.
"Indeed, they add to artefacts uncovered in recent years at the nearby Linmere housing development, also known as HRN1, which gives an insight to 8,000 years of human life in Houghton Regis, which I hope you’ll agree are fascinating discoveries from a historical and educational perspective.
"Unfortunately, Houstone School will not be ready to accommodate pupils from September, while further delays are expected before the sports field can be used, as archaeological investigations are continuing.
"We are working closely with Advantage Schools – the multi-academy trust that will run the school – about arrangements for attending classes temporarily at the UTC building and we will continue to offer support through our School Improvement team.
"This evening and tomorrow evening, Advantage Schools are also holding some webinars with parents whose children are joining Houstone School in September, and this update will be included in that presentation. We will also ensure that this update and any further new information is communicated with parents, residents and the wider community.
"If you have any further questions, please do get in touch with our School Organisation team by emailing: School.Organisation@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
Watch:
Name of New Academy Announced | Information Event in August
17 July 2021
On Friday, Advantage Schools announced the name of their new school opening in Houghton Regis. “Houstone” was the name of Houghton Regis in the Domesday book 935 years ago. It was selected from a shortlist of suggestions in a community engagement exercise also circulated on local social media. The community liked the historic and geographic significance and so they have named the school after that.
Chief Executive of Advantage Schools, Stuart Lock said, “I am grateful to the hundreds of community members who contributed to this community engagement event and thank them for helping us to name the school. There were some excellent names put forward, but the overwhelming favourite was Houston.
“Of course, a name is one thing, but the real test will be founding a brilliant new school, with standards of teaching, curriculum and conduct that the local community deserve. It is that which we aspire to do, and I invite you all to find out more via our new website, under construction. There will be further announcements on our Facebook Page and on Twitter.”
For clarity, the pronunciation is “how-stone”.
“Houstone seems appropriate and distinctive as it is the historic name for Houghton Regis.”
“I think this one is so much better than the other two. Unusual, classy and original with a bit of history. Great choice.”
“I very much like this name. It has some history behind it which will give the school some unique character. Not to mention the name of the school can help students take pride in their local community.”
There were 356 responses asking for feedback to the suggested ideas on three potential names. Comments included,Our new school, due to open in September 2022 in Houghton Regis, has been named. Please follow @HoustoneSchool for more information.
— Advantage Schools (@advschools) July 16, 2021
“Houstone seems appropriate and distinctive as it is the historic name for Houghton Regis.”
“I think this one is so much better than the other two. Unusual, classy and original with a bit of history. Great choice.”
“I very much like this name. It has some history behind it which will give the school some unique character. Not to mention the name of the school can help students take pride in their local community.”
Chief Executive of Advantage Schools, Stuart Lock said, “I am grateful to the hundreds of community members who contributed to this community engagement event and thank them for helping us to name the school. There were some excellent names put forward, but the overwhelming favourite was Houston.
“Of course, a name is one thing, but the real test will be founding a brilliant new school, with standards of teaching, curriculum and conduct that the local community deserve. It is that which we aspire to do, and I invite you all to find out more via our new website, under construction. There will be further announcements on our Facebook Page and on Twitter.”
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