South Bristol School Fields Sold For Homes And New Primary School Hengrove 2026

Key Points

• Land Disposal Approved: Bristol City Council leadership has formally agreed to dispose of roughly 28 acres of school playing field land in Hengrove, South Bristol.
• New Housing and School: The redevelopment plans include constructing hundreds of new residential properties alongside a brand-new, purpose-built facility for Oasis Academy New Oak.
• School Relocation: The physical site currently occupied by Oasis Academy New Oak will be included in the land sold to housing developers, with the replacement primary school to be erected on retained land nearby.
• Enhanced Community Facilities: Proceeds generated from the land sale will fund a new nursery for 26 children, a teacher training centre, dedicated Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) provision, enhanced sports pitches, and a public park.
• Current Land Condition: The land being sold off, located to the south and west of the site shared with Oasis Academy John Williams, has been described by academy bosses as being in poor condition and largely unsuitable for team sports.

Bristol (Bristol Express News) August 18, 2026 – As reported by Tristan Cork of Bristol Live, Bristol City Council’s Executive Director for Growth and Regeneration has taken the decision, as part of a formal governance process, to agree to the in-principle disposal of approximately 28 acres of land situated at the Oasis Academy John Williams and Oasis Academy New Oak sites in Hengrove, South Bristol. The council-owned land, currently leased to the Oasis Community Learning academy trust, will be sold off to private developers to pave the way for a major residential construction project alongside a complete rebuild of the local primary school.

Why Has Bristol City Council Approved The Sale Of School Playing Fields?

As reported by Tristan Cork of Bristol Live, the decision by municipal chiefs follows an extensive statutory process initiated when the proposal was first publicly unveiled in October 2024. The plot under consideration spans a wide perimeter to the south and west of the shared educational campus, located west of Wells Road and north of New Fosseway Road. The area earmarked for disposal includes the footprint of the existing Oasis Academy New Oak primary school, which serves just over 200 young pupils.

Under the approved structure, the existing primary school buildings will be demolished following the construction of a new, modern replacement facility on retained land located closer to Oasis Academy John Williams, a secondary school on the same site catering for up to 900 students. The broader area previously contained the former New Fosseway School, which was demolished years prior, with its southern boundary currently undergoing separate residential development.

How Will The Proceeds From The Land Sale Be Reinvested Into Educational Provision?

As reported by Tristan Cork of Bristol Live, an official spokesperson for Oasis Community Learning stated that

“Parts of this land remain largely unused, and in a condition that renders it unsuitable for team sports – particularly around the southern boundary of the site.”

The spokesperson for Oasis Community Learning further stated:

“The land has been identified as a potential development opportunity, with proceeds from the development to be used to build a brand-new, purpose-built, state-of-the-art school building for Oasis Academy New Oak, with dedicated Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) facilities, a new nursery for 26 children, a teacher training centre, a new park for the community, and better quality sports facilities and pitches for use by both the academies and the local community.”

The spokesperson added that

“The development of new housing would also provide much-needed affordable homes for the area.”

As reported by Tristan Cork of Bristol Live, Steve Chalke, the founder of the Oasis Academy Trust, stated that the land slated for disposal was in “poor condition”. Steve Chalke stated:

“This development represents a significant opportunity for our schools and our community.”

Steve Chalke further stated:

“Not only will it provide much-needed affordable housing, but it also allows us to use some poor-condition land to deliver a fantastic new school building with greatly increased SEND facilities, a teacher training centre, as well as a desperately needed nursery and brilliant sports facilities.”

What Is The Scale Of The Proposed Housing Development And Projected Timeline?

As reported by Tristan Cork of Bristol Live, while exact density metrics and formal planning applications for the residential sector remain subject to final submittals, the 28-acre site holds capacity for between 200 and 400 new residential units, dependent on final layout, structural density, and the mix of private and affordable housing types.

The master plan timeline outlined by project leads indicates that formal planning consent for both the housing element and the educational estate will be processed, with initial physical works commencing on the replacement primary school first. The replacement Oasis Academy New Oak facility is slated to be constructed concurrently alongside the existing operational school building before the original structures are cleared. Construction on the residential housing sector in the southern portion of the site is scheduled to follow during subsequent construction phases.

Background Of The Particular Development

The land at Hengrove has long served as a educational hub in South Bristol, anchored by the presence of both primary and secondary educational institutions. However, significant portions of the perimeter grounds, particularly towards the south and west, suffered from poor drainage and ground conditions over many years, rendering large swaths unusable for official school athletics or formal league sports.

The site forms part of a broader educational delivery strategy by Oasis Community Learning in Bristol. The trust has previously undertaken other high-profile school building projects across the city during the 2020s, including the Oasis Academy Daventry Road secondary project in uk/local/knowle/">Knowle West, built on the former playing fields of Park School. That initiative experienced operational and construction timeline delays, requiring students to be temporarily accommodated in modular classroom structures located adjacent to the Hengrove campus site while awaiting completion of their permanent venue.

The strategy of disposing of underutilised or surplus municipal land leased to academy trusts to self-fund major capital investments, specialist SEND infrastructure, and early years nurseries has increasingly been deployed across local authorities to modernise aging 20th-century school infrastructure without relying solely on direct central government capital grants.

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Prediction: How This Development Can Affect Local Residents And Families

This structural development is set to have a direct, multi-faceted impact on local residents, families, and school pupils across South Bristol and the Hengrove area:

• For School Children and Parents: Primary school pupils at Oasis Academy New Oak will experience a major transition from an aging facility into a modern, state-of-the-art educational environment equipped with specialized SEND resources and dedicated early years nursery provision for 26 children. The retention and upgrading of the remaining sports fields will provide significantly higher-quality athletic facilities for both primary and secondary pupils compared to the degraded condition of the current fields.
• For Local Homebuyers and Renters: The addition of several hundred new residential dwellings—including a designated proportion of affordable housing units—will alleviate pressing local housing supply shortages in South Bristol, providing opportunities for local families and first-time buyers seeking accommodation within the city catchment.
• For Nearby Neighbourhood Residents: Local homeowners and residents living along the Wells Road and New Fosseway Road corridors will face interim challenges during the multi-year construction phase, including increased heavy vehicle traffic, noise, and localized disruption. In the longer term, the conversion of closed, unused school land into a publicly accessible community park and modernized athletic infrastructure will provide improved open green spaces for the wider neighbourhood.