Wandsworth has been granted almost £18m from the Government to create new primary school places, it was announced this week.
The council bid for the money in July for the extension of several popular schools to cope with the borough’s soaring birth rate.
The number of children born in Wandsworth rose to 5,200 this year - compared with just 4,000 in 2001.
Tooting MP Sadiq Khan said: “I’m delighted that the Government has agreed to award Wandsworth almost £18 million to increase primary school places in the borough.
“Wandsworth’s nickname is ‘nappy valley’ due to the huge increase in young families in the area, so I’m really pleased the Secretary of State has listened to my representations and given Wandsworth this funding to increase primary school places.”
The increase in pupil numbers has been blamed on more young families moving into the borough as well as increased demand for the state sector during the recession.
The plans, which have just undergone public consultation, involve a building programme to increase capacity across four schools by 630 places.
Belleville School, which currently has around 650 pupils, would take on an extra 30 places per year for the next seven years- resulting in an extra 210 places.
The same is planned for Beatrix Potter School in Wandsworth, which currently has around 270 pupils.
Hotham School and St Michael’s School, both in Putney, would each take on an extra 15 pupils every year for seven years - 105 extra places each.
The grant was part of a country-wide £300 million package to provide an extra 15,000 new primary places altogether.
London Councils has welcomed the move, but warned that some boroughs experiencing capacity issues had not been awarded grants.
The organisation’s Councillor Nick Stanton said: “We need the government to accept how extreme this crisis is in the capital and provide us with a far greater slice of funding.”
The news comes after local parents launched a campaign for another secondary school in south Battersea.
Councillor Peter Dawson, chairman of Wandsworth Council’s children’s and young persons overview and scrutiny committee, said the idea was worth exploring, but it is still in the preliminary stages.
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