Free school open day spreads the word (From The Oxford Times)

Free school open day spreads the word

6:00pm Wednesday 25th April 2012 in Oxford

PROSPECTIVE parents hoping to send their children to Oxfordshire’s first free school had a chance to look round the facilities and meet new headteacher Peter Ashbourne.

Parents at the Europa School open day on Saturday included Benedicte Yue, from Drayton, hopes to send daughters Lily-Rose, three, left, and India, five, to the school.

The Europa School, near Culham, opens in September and all pupils will be taught in at least two languages.

Mrs Yue, whose two older children, Louis, 10, and Evanna, eight, attend the European School in Culham which the new school will eventually replace, said: “We are a mixed couple with two countries in our house so for us it’s ideal to be able to give them a multilingual education.”

Mrs Yue is French, and her husband, Lindsay, is from Mauritius.

Applications close on Monday and there have already been enough applications to fill 70 per cent of the 168 reception, Year One and Year Two places available.