A PERSISTENT bid to get Tiverton High School rebuilt could lead to it being put on a different site, it has emerged.

In an exchange in Parliament between the area’s MP, Rachel Gilmour (Liberal Democrat, Tiverton and Minehead) and Josh MacAlister, the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Education, confirmed work was underway in terms of refreshing the school.

But he also revealed that an alternative location might have been found, prompted in part by the fact the current site is on a flood plain.

“The project is at pre-feasibility stage, and the department is undertaking technical work and planning appraisals,” Mr MacAlister said in response to a question from Ms Gilmour.

“Work to date suggests that significant development of the school will be required, and that this may not be permitted by the planning authority on the current site due to its location in a flood zone.

“The department has identified a potential alternative location for the school and is in discussions with interested parties.”

Ms Gilmour announced recently that she had secured a pledge from Mr MacAlister to write to her, Mid Devon District Council and Devon County Council to provide a full written update on the progress of Tiverton High School in the government’s school rebuilding programme.

The school was first promised a rebuild in 1999 and placed on the then-Labour government’s priority list in 2008, before funding was withdrawn, Ms Gilmour stated.

It then got added to the government’s Schools Rebuilding Programme in November 2024, after the chancellor confirmed £1.4 billion for a national rebuild programme in that October’s Budget.

The school was built on a floodplain over 60 years ago. The Environment Agency reports have scored regular flooding of school buildings as a “risk to life”.