Plans to build a new school and sixth form in Dartford have been approved by the Department of Education.

The new secondary school, Stone Lodge Academy will be set up by education trust Endeavour Mat and open in 2019.

The trust already runs both Wilmington Grammar for boys and girls.

The new academy will be a non-selective school that will work closely with the other schools already established by the trust.

The final student numbers are expected to be 1,020 for years 7-11 and up to 400 sixth form places. 

Executive Head Teacher, Donna Lodge commented: “This is wonderful news for our existing Trust schools and for the local area. We look forward to students from all the schools working harmoniously together on joint collaborative projects.”

The new secondary school will offer courses and qualifications to complement the construction sector, by working with local business partners such as Laing O’ Rourke, AECOM and Whitecode.

Toby Young, Director of New Schools Network, said: “The application process to set up a free school is extremely rigorous so it is a testament to Endeavour MAT’s hard work that they have been approved to open.”