The Bishop of London, Richard Chartres, has attended the official opening of the re-built Holy Trinity School in Dalston. During the two-year development programme, the highly rated C of E Primary School ran in the Dalston Methodist Centre, with the Nursery and Preschool classes housed in the nave of nearby Holy Trinity Church.

During the visit, the Bishop was shown the innovative new learning space for Holy Trinity’s pupils. The development, built by Telford Homes, allows the school to double in size, and includes an outstanding Ofsted rated preschool for children 3 months – 2 years as well as specialist art and cooking rooms which parents as well as children can access.

The school sits beneath a housing development comprising of 101 flats, which were ready for occupation from October 2016. The innovative design places a play deck between the roof of the school and the residential accommodation, thereby providing the School with a running track, a multi-use games area, rock climbing wall and climbing frames.

Holy Trinity, which was rated outstanding by Ofsted in its most recent inspection, serves pupils from the ages of three to eleven years old.  It aims to develop the whole child through a diverse and culture rich curriculum; the school is committed to providing high quality education within a welcoming environment and to ensuring the inclusion of all pupils irrespective of their need, background or faith.

The Bishop joined Governors, building developers, staff, parents and pupils at official opening and blessed the school and its continued commitment to the community it serves.

In the evening, the school welcomed over one hundred guests to a reception to mark the opening of the new building. Guests included building developers, London Diocesan Board for School, Hackney Learning Trust, Local Ward Councillors along with old friends of the school, such as the Reverend Rose Hudson-Wilkin who was closely involved in the programme to realise the school’s vision for growth while at Holy Trinity Church.

Yvonne Barnett, Head Teacher of Holy Trinity School, said:

“We are excited to be opening our outstanding new school building with the blessing of the Bishop of London. We are looking forward to providing the best educational opportunities for our community with this innovative learning space, and to welcoming more pupils to our school. Our thanks go to the Dalston Methodist Centre and Holy Trinity Church for kindly hosting the school, nursery and preschool for the last two years to allow this development to go ahead.”