Use of closed school by Netflix criticised

A council has been criticised for making money by allowing a closed school to be used by film production companies.

Buckinghamshire Council was paid £434,494 after Burnham Park Academy near Slough was used as a filming location, including scenes for the hit Netflix series Heartstopper.

The school was shut down after an "inadequate" Ofsted inspection in 2019 and parents have had to send their children to schools elsewhere.

John Chilver, cabinet member for resources at the council, said "no profit is being made" by the local education authority.

The Department for Education closed the school in August 2019, after it was rated inadequate by Ofsted following an inspection in March 2019.

Three production companies have hired space at the empty buildings on Opendale Road since 2021-22.

Lee Wignall, a parent of two, said it was "disgusting" as he now faces having to send his 11-year-old daughter to a high school outside of Burnham in September.

He said: "That school should definitely be re-opened, no question."

Marie Hammon, chairperson of Burnham Parish Council, said the closure of the school had left the village "neglected, isolated and abandoned".

"I am astonished therefore that the council are making more than £400,000 from filming at the school," she said.

Although it was run by an academy trust, Buckinghamshire Council owns the freehold of Burnham Park's buildings and playing fields.

After a campaign was started to gather data on how many local children would be interested in the school, the council said the numbers were "unfortunately not enough to sustain a viable school".

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, John Chilver, cabinet member for resources at the Conservative-run council, said: "Since the [school] closure... a small number of ad hoc filming opportunities have taken place at the location requiring short term licences."

He said no "long-term" contracts had been agreed and the future of the site was being "determined".

"The income made from these filming opportunities is used to offset the ongoing vacancy and security costs at the site, no profit is being made," he said.

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