Nuclear power plant to run school

Sellafield nuclear power plant will run a state school specialising in science and business enterprise, it has been revealed.

Sellafield Ltd, which runs the plant near Whitehaven, Cumbria, is one of three organisations that will manage the new West Lakes Academy.

The University of Central Lancashire and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority are the other organisations involved in the academy, which was formed by the merging of two secondary schools.

The academy will open in September in Egremont, near Sellafield. The institution will initially operate in the premises of one of the closing schools, while modern facilities are built in the next year.

A spokesman for the nuclear plant said: "Sellafield Ltd is key to Britain's energy future and our ongoing support for the West Lakes Academy is part of a wider strategy to help reinforce the nuclear skills base in the UK and secure the inclusion of west Cumbria in the UK's energy policy.

"Our business is a valuable strategic asset to the UK in terms of its operational expertise and also the capacity it has to develop that knowledge within a new generation of nuclear experts who will maintain Sellafield's position as global centre of excellence for nuclear skills."

(Source: The Press Association)