Ledsham - Free school Presumption Consultation

Background

The Council has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient school places within the Borough.

We are proposing to provide a new 1FE primary school as part of strategic development, Ledsham Road, Ellesmere Port. The school will initially be a 1FE, with the opportunity to provide a further 0.5FE as the need arises. The provision is expected to be open from September 2028. This in turn will provide an additional 210 primary places, with a Published Admission Number (PAN) of 30, with the opportunity to provide a further 105 places.

This proposal will assist the Council in meeting this sufficiency duty in Planning Area, Ellesmere Port West.

The proposal to create a Free school has arisen due to foreplaned mitigation of expected pupils from strategic development, Ledsham Road. Also known as Ledsham Garden Village. The development is 2,000 residential dwellings. Data demonstrates the additional dwellings creates the need for 315 primary places to directly serve the new development.

The proposal also includes provision for three - four year olds, Special Educational Need provision and a new shared catchment area.

We would like to hear your views on the proposal. Your views on this proposal will help us formulate and finalise the specification for the new school, as part of the Free School Presumption Process.

Find out more

Have your say

The 4 week consultation period will run from the 27 April 2026 to 25 May 2026

• Complete the electronic survey.

The survey will need to be completed and returned to us by the closing date of Monday 25 May 2026.

What happens next 

All feedback received during the consultation period will be considered and used to formalise the specification for the new primary school. Once the specification has been agreed we can then progress with seeking expressions of Interest from Free School or Academy Providers who would like to run the school.

The Free School Presumption is expected to start Summer 2026.

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Accessibility

Council information is also available in audio, braille, large print or other formats. If you would like a copy in a different format, in another language or require a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter, please contact us:

• Email: equalities@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk
• Phone: 0300 123 8 123
• Textphone: 18001 01606 867670