Member Article

St. Catherine’s College becomes School Letting Solutions’ 125th partner

St. Catherine’s College in Eastbourne has become the 125th school in the country to partner with an organisation that opens school facilities for community use.

The college on Priory Road has joined forces with School Lettings Solutions (SLS) to become a community leisure venue on evenings and weekends, playing host to activities such as fitness classes, dance workshops and craft groups.

SLS is one of the fastest growing sport and leisure companies in the country, matching schools that are looking to generate income with community groups that need quality, affordable venues.

Thanks to this new venture, Eastbourne-based groups will be able to hire the dance, drama and PE studios, conference facilities, classrooms, the gym, and IT suites at St. Catherine’s College for regular classes or ad hoc events.

Mark Talbot, principal of St. Catherine’s College, said: “At a time when school budgets are under pressure like never before, it is incumbent on leadership teams to explore every possible opportunity to increase revenue. I’m looking forward to that ambition being realised through our work with SLS.”

Entrepreneurs Paul Andrews and Scott Warrington founded SLS in 2011 and now employ over 400 staff. The organisation works in partnership with schools across the country to improve access to high quality facilities for over 5,000 sports clubs, performing arts groups and community organisations.

Director of School Letting Solutions, Scott Warrington, said: “We’re delighted to welcome St. Catherine’s College as our 125th partnership. This is a real milestone for SLS and we’re confident the college is going to be busy on evenings and weekends, with local people taking part in a host of activities.

“As secondary schools and colleges are currently facing a cut in funding, we hope to partner with more schools in Sussex to help them to increase revenue and fill this gap. At the same time, community groups can gain access to quality facilities, supported by experienced staff who meet the highest standards in child safeguarding.

“We strongly believe that school children and adults alike should have access to activities that enable them to reach their full potential and can help with their physical and mental health. That’s why we are continuing to develop partnerships with schools to improve community access to facilities across the country.”

For more information, please visit: http://schoollettings.org

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ursula Hutchinson .