A SCHOOL has prevented its pupils enduring a potential hour-long commute to lessons by scrapping plans to relocate to Barnet and opting to stay in Harrow instead.

Avanti House School, both the borough’s first free school and its first all-through school combining primary and secondary education, has spent its first year in a temporary home of Harrow Teachers’ Centre in Tudor Road, Wealdstone, but when the accommodation was deemed unsatisfactory for its long term needs, the institution prepared for a move east to a new, albeit temporary, site over the border in Mill Hill.

However, the governors announced on Monday the school will take over from September the buildings of the former Peterborough and St Margaret’s School (PSM) in Common Road, Stanmore.

Avanti House School principal Gareth Jones said: “I am so delighted that we will be moving to PSM. It is a wonderful site, quiet, and well-located and equipped, providing an outstanding learning environment for pupils and by making this move we will be preserving it as a school and as a resource for the community.

“I fear it may not be possible to accommodate everyone, but we do have a few places left for this September on a first come, first served basis.”

Prospective parents were originally informed the school would have to move from Harrow Teachers’ Centre only after they had submitted their secondary school preference for their son or daughter.

This left them with a quandary: either accept an offer at Avanti House School which would have by then settled in Mill Hill, or reject the offer and be allocated a place elsewhere by Harrow Council.

Ben Rich, school governor, said; “We had a site in Barnet lined up with a place near Northway School, which was okay, but had a lot of issues and wasn’t popular with the local community in terms of traffic.

“It is complete coincidence the PSM site became available and it’s a much more suitable site and is much nearer our core community. There will be some refurbishment as PSM was used to smaller class sizes and classrooms.”

Mr Rich confirmed the infant element of the school, a reception intake of 60 and the equivalent in year one, will remain at sister Krishna Avanti Primary School in Camrose Avenue, Edgware, and the secondary element, up to 180 children in year seven and the same in year eight, will relocate to PSM.

In the long term, the former PSM site will become home to the primary school aspect and a different, new site found for the secondary contingent.

Peterborough and St Margaret’s School (PSM) was shut by its trustees over a £25,000 funding shortfall despite protests by parents and children.