School in Yate makes bid for cinema (From Gazette Series)

School in Yate makes bid for cinema

8:30am Thursday 12th March 2009

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PLANS to build a cinema in Yate have been given fresh hope thanks to a secondary school headteacher.

Brimsham Green School head Alun Williams wants to see a 500-seater auditorium built at an undecided location in the town.

Mr Williams said: "I put in a £2.1million bid for a cinema. I approached Yate Town Council and they said they would be interested in helping with it.

"It would make sense to have it on the school site because we have the land but it does not necessarily have to be. It would be a community resource."

Yate has been bidding for a cinema for more than five years.

Northavon MP Steve Webb launched the Cinema4Yate campaign, supported by the Gazette, in 2004.

"Thousands of people told us they wanted a cinema and not just young people but grandparents, who said they would quite like to see a matinee in the afternoon," said Mr Webb.

"We got quite close with architect’s plans being drawn up until the shopping centre changed hands the last time."

Yate Shopping Centre has, until now, always been considered the preferred location for a cinema.

Added Mr Webb: "The town centre is more accessible for most people but we would just like to see a local cinema.

"I shall persist on this and I am meeting the shopping centre management later this month.

"But if the school can deliver a cinema in the meantime that would be fantastic. All praise to them for trying."

The school’s ambitious multi-million pound bid has been turned down this academic year but Mr Williams said he would try again next year.

Brimsham Green is a specialist humanities college and hopes to launch a diploma in creative media in September 2010.

An extra £60million of capital funding for schools offering the new post-14 diploma was announced by the Government last year to boost the teaching of the new courses.

Schools minister Jim Knight said: "The diploma is an exciting qualification and young people should have purpose-built high quality facilities so they can achieve their academic best through a new form of learning more strongly related to the world of work."

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