Trust 'delighted' by uptake of leisure facilities at new Kenilworth School
The Kenilworth Multi Academy Trust (KMAT) behind the new Kenilworth School has said it is "delighted" with how quickly local community groups and clubs have come to use the leisure facilities on site.
When the new £56 million school opened on Glasshouse Lane in September, KMAT also began taking bookings from locals for the various sports pitches and rooms across the site.
At the previous school site, the bookings were managed by an external third-party company - but the community facilities have now been brought in house by KMAT, and are run separately from the school.
Local groups can now make the most of the indoor sports hall, multi-use studio, fitness suite (opening soon), six outdoor courts, two 3G pitches, grass pitches and changing rooms.
And within the space of a few weeks, the trust has had to take on more staff to help coordinate and run the host of sports clubs and community groups that have already started using the new top-class facilities, based at the new school.
"It has been absolutely incredible, the uptake so far," KMAT CEO Hayden Abbott told Nub News.
"Things have gathered momentum so quickly, and it is great to see how many different groups have already come to the school to use the pitches and the rooms inside the school.
"From the start of the process, this was always going to be a community school, so it is vital we reach out to as many different local organisations as possible.
"It has been wonderful to see, not just the groups who used the old facilities at Leyes Lane, but also new sports clubs have come to use the new facilities on site."
Within the school day the new facilities are providing a major boost to the curriculum offer for the 1,860 pupils at the school, and the physical and mental wellbeing of the students.
The new fitness studio is also available for free use to staff at Kenilworth School outside school hours, as well as those at The Westwood Academy, the partner school within the trust.
And as KMAT grows, Mr Abbott says these new facilities will benefit others even further afield.
"Of course, we have the immediate benefit to our children and our staff at both Westwood and Kenilworth, which is fantastic," Mr Abbott explained.
"However, as the trust expands, to other schools, new incumbents will also benefit from the new pitches, and indoor sports facilities.
"What we have created here is truly world-leading in terms of education, and we want as many people as possible to benefit from this going forward.
"This is one of the key points of the trust - 'aspiring to excellence through quality, ambition and independence' - and that really is our ethos played out in daily practice."
And while KMAT has already hit the ground running with the leisure and lettings, it also has big plans to expand its offering.
KMAT hopes to open a kiosk on site for spectators to buy refreshments, and is also about to welcome the Air Cadets to the new site for the first time allowing them dedicated spaces for use. .
Plans to run holiday groups and activities are also in the works, for across the age groups - and the school will be hosting an FA football camp over the coming half term.
"This was never just going to be an ordinary school," Mr Abbott added.
"We have been given a real chance to create something ground-breaking at Kenilworth School, not just in terms of education, but also in our offer to the wider community.
"We have made a great start so far, but we want to really build on this over the coming months to offer a truly rich and diverse programme of activities."
To find out more about the new sports and leisure facilities at Kenilworth School, or to make a booking, follow this link to the website here.
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