As you know I am the principal of Atlantic Academy, as well as Bideford College.  At Atlantic Academy our approach combines the support of a small community school, with specialist teachers and resources.

Atlantic Academy does not currently operate a catchment area but a consultation is now running about the introduction of one.  If the decision is made to introduce a catchment area, this does mean that the catchment area for Bideford College would be reduced. 

As it stands, Bideford College’s catchment includes the northern part of Hartland’s area, Woolsery and the northern part of Parkham.  By redesignating them to Atlantic Academy and extending the catchment to cover all of Parkham and Hartland’s catchments, this is how Atlantic Academy’s catchment area would look:

And this is how Bideford College’s would look:

 

Under the proposals, Woolsery Primary, Parkham Primary and Hartland Primary School would all become feeder primaries for Atlantic Academy.  The new arrangements would also alter the provision of free school transport, with prospective students from Hartland and Woolsery only being able to secure free local authority transport to Atlantic Academy.  

Only those in the Bideford catchment area that lived more than 3 miles from the school would be eligible for transport to Bideford College.  To be clear, these changes would not impact any current students. 
 
I want parents to know that Atlantic Academy is a great option for their children.  Subject specialist teaching ensures we offer our students and families excellent pastoral care, strong relationships between school and home, as well as develop pathways to post-16 learning. Our staff get to know our students and their families exceptionally well, meaning we can identify the needs of our learners, and work collaboratively to meet these.

The consultation will be open until the 10th of January 2025.

I would welcome your views on this proposal and you can share here.

If you have any questions about this please don’t hesitate to get in touch.  

Dr Claire Ankers
Principal
Atlantic Academy and Bideford College