FAQs
What is OneSchool Global?
OneSchool Global (OSG) is a network of schools which was established by members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church community. OSG serves students from primary school through to senior school.
It is a truly global school network with over 120 campuses in 20 countries, including cities such as New York, Paris, Sydney, Rome, Auckland, Copenhagen, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Across England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales OSG has 27 campuses. They provide innovative learning and teaching programmes to over 3,500 students, in partnership with more than 580 staff. All schools are registered and inspected by Independent Schools Inspectorate.
Further information can be found on our website: https://www.oneschoolglobal.com/
Who are the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church?
The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church is a Christian fellowship driven by care and compassion that has an established history across the UK.
Members of the Church have lived and worked in the UK for nearly 200 years and are committed to serving the communities where its members live and work, including through extensive charitable and philanthropic activities.
Further information can be found on our website: www.plymouthbrethrenchristianchurch.org
Why does OSG need a new campus?
The new campus responds to a growing need for a high-quality, modern, campus in the area.
Currently, OSG pupils attend a primary and secondary school in the Greater Reading area. However, due to both physical and planning constraints, these schools do not adequately meet the needs of the students and staff.
In response, OSG has identified the site of the former St Gabriel’s convent in Cold Ash as the ideal location to deliver a new combined campus. The site is strategically located to be most accessible to local students.
How many pupils would be attending the school?
The new school campus will serve up to 120 pupils and provide both primary and secondary learning facilities as well as a sports hall and external pitches.
Why are you proposing to remove the existing convent?
Since ceasing to be used, the buildings and site have fallen into further disrepair. Left in its current state the buildings will continue to decline, offer no benefit to the local community, and pose a safety risk to anyone who enters them.
The proposals present an opportunity to repurpose the site and deliver an attractive new school campus built to serve students for years to come. This can only be achieved through removing the existing buildings on the site.
How would this impact nearby roads?
Overall, 34 car parking spaces, including disabled spaces, will be delivered, alongside 10 minibus spaces, which will be supported by a dedicated minibus parking and drop-off area for OSG pupils.
The students will be transported to the school on mini buses which are owned and maintained by OneBus, a non-profit passenger transport service which are driven by drivers from the church community and serve the OneSchool Global group of schools. This will minimise traffic on the nearby roads.
In addition, while the car park has been designed with sufficient space to accommodate those accessing the school by car or bus, the hardcourt play area has been designed to double up as overflow car parking for school events, ensuring flexibility without disruption and preventing any overspill onto neighbouring roads.
To further minimise any impact on the road network, the project team has also sought to deliver transportation enhancements for the long-term benefit of the neighbouring St Finian’s Catholic Primary School.
A new one-way drop-off/pick-up route and designed area will be introduced for St Finian’s, to reduce traffic congestion which has emerged as an issue during peak hours. To support this, the existing St Finian’s school exit route has also been widened to improve traffic flow.
How would this benefit the community?
The proposals present an opportunity to re-imagine the declining site in Cold Ash by delivering a new high-quality school campus that will serve OSG students for years to come.
They will also alleviate the peak transport concerns felt by St Finian’s currently with the introduction of a dedicated drop-off and pick-up area for the long-term benefit of our new neighbours.
Once delivered, the new school campus will share the strong ethos of charitable activity which is championed by OSG and the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church. Students often organise fundraising projects for various local organisations as part of their ‘Active Citizenship Project’ which forms part of the curriculum handbook.
The new campus is expected to create a number of new roles which will be available to local people.
When would the new school campus be delivered?
OSG expects to submit a planning application to West Berkshire Council by Summer 2025. Subject to approval, OSG will endeavour to deliver the new campus as soon as possible.
Construction of the new campus will be delivered in a manner which is responsible and respectful to the surrounding area. As part of this, a construction management plan will be agreed with West Berkshire Council to mitigate any impact on local residents and the surrounding area.
What happens next?
The public consultation will close on 7th July.
The views of residents will be carefully balanced against the requirements of national and local planning policy, the views of planning officers and other statutory consultees, when finalising the planning application.