GUISELEY'S oldest school is starting a new chapter by taking its first cohort of reception children.

St Oswald’s C of E Junior School has now become a primary, taking children from the ages of four to 11.

To accommodate the changes a new, two-storey wing has been built onto the school, creating a purpose-designed reception unit. There is also a dedicated reception playground at the back of the new building.

The school says it has recruited a team of highly experienced early years staff to ensure the new unit lives up to the high reputation St Oswald's has always had for educating older children.

The building programme has also enabled other improvements to be made to the school, including remodelling a number of rooms in the main building, improving the school’s IT infrastructure and building a new adventure play trim trail. Two large classrooms have been provided for the new intake of Year 3 children.

The school has also introduced a new uniform to further mark the transformation.

Headteacher, Rupert Madeley, said: "We are very excited by this new chapter in the long history of St Oswald's School.

"Having reception age children in school is wonderful.

"We are thrilled with the new building. The classroom spaces are superb and will enable us to continue to provide the very best learning experiences for our children."

The Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of West Yorkshire and the Dales, will officially open the new building on November 17, and will bless the school on the start of the new chapter in its long history.

St Oswald's will also hold an open afternoon from 2pm on October 22 for parents and members of the public to view the new building and the other changes to the school.

The school was founded in about 1590, during the reign of Elizabeth I. The older part of the building is Victorian, but it was enlarged and modernised in 1966, with a further major refurbishment in 2001.