The latest programme of school infrastructure improvements worth £8.6 million has been unveiled by Nottinghamshire County Council

The investment is part of the council’s annual school building improvement work which will be designed and delivered by Arc Partnership, a joint venture between the council and SCAPE.

A dozen schools will benefit from a range of improvements, dependent on the needs for each school. The works will include roof replacements, drainage improvements as well as energy-efficient lighting and boiler upgrades.

Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Asset Management, Councillor Keith Girling, said:

“Investing in our schools’ infrastructure is vital. Young people deserve to study and learn in buildings which are fit-for-purpose.

“We know that some schools were impacted by flooding earlier this year, so those schools most in need of improvements to their drainage systems are being prioritised. We have also secured some government money to help towards this work.

“This latest programme of work will once again help school buildings be more energy efficient and help save on bills. It is all part of a long-term investment plan which has seen various improvements to 67 school buildings since 2021.

“Once again, the vast majority of this work will be carried out by local contractors, which is good news for the local economy.”

Councillor Sam Smith, Cabinet Member for Education and SEND, who alongside the Council Leader Ben Bradley, recently wrote to the Department for Education to get reassurance to its commitment to fund the council’s school rebuilding programme. He added,

“This annual programme to improve school buildings is an important investment in our children’s future.”

While the council has a duty to maintain school infrastructure, the day-to-day maintenance tasks are the responsibility of the respective schools. This collaborative approach helps to ensure that schools can address immediate maintenance needs and allow the council to focus on larger infrastructure projects and improvements.

Planned improvements for 2024/5 includes:

James Peacock Infant school in Ruddington. The school will benefit from work worth more than £1.04 million to upgrade the building’s infrastructure and help improve energy efficiency. This will include new ceilings and lighting, replacing the flat roof covering and insulation and the external cladding. (This is additional funding/works to what has been approved in previous years).

Pierrepont Gamston school will have two sets of improvements: Replacing the roof covering and improve insulation (£250,000) Replace old boiler with an energy efficient one (£205,000)

Woods Church of England Foundation Primary, Woodborough will have £549,000 worth of work to have gas boilers replaced with high efficiency modern equivalent. All heaters and pipework will also be replaced. This is additional funding/works to what had been approved in previous years.

Manor Park Infant and Nursery in Calverton will have £100,000 worth of work will include structural inspection of the floors in a number of classrooms with remedial works as necessary.

Pinewood Infant and Nursery, Killisick will have its roof covering replaced and other work to improve insulation. (£586,000)

Walkeringham Primary in the Bassetlaw area will have £160K worth of works to improve its drainage system after suffering from flooding earlier this year by using the latest techniques to mimic natural drainage, known as sustainable urban drainage

North Wheatley school, near Retford will have similar sustainable urban drainage works after also being impacted by recent flooding, as part of a £170,000 investment.

Berry Hill Primary and Nursery in Mansfield will see a £2.33 million investment to replace roof covering and improved insulation. The ceiling will be replaced as well as improvements to ceiling tiles, lighting, fire alarm systems.

High Oakham Primary in Mansfield will have its pitched roof replaced at a cost of £2.5 million. The work will also include replacement of ceiling, including works to ceiling tiles, Lighting, fire alarm systems and incorporating works identified through the site risk assessments.

Underwood Church of England Primary, Underwood will have £224,310 worth of work to identify and carry out remedial works to rectify water leaks to the Learning Lodge.

Jacksdale Primary and Nursery, Jacksdale, near Selston will have £62,500 invested to install new pumps to the basement to remove standing water and help prevent future flooding.

Maun Infant and Nursery in New Ollerton, £135,000 worth of work will help improve parts of an old drainage system plus replace internal rainwater pipes.

Source: Nottinghamshire County Council

Some £140 million will be needed to invest in school buildings in a Gwent borough with refurbishments to two Welsh medium primaries the top priority.

Plans to upgrade Ysgol Bryn Onnen, in Varteg, Pontypool, and Ysgol Gymraeg Cwmbran were delayed during the most recent round of funding, when £30m was available, due to rising construction costs following the Covid pandemic.

Torfaen Borough Council has now approved investment priorities for the next nine year cycle of education investment in its draft plan for spending under the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning fund. As yet it is unclear how much funding will be available to the council.

It has also stated working with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese will be an “emphasis” of the funding from 2025 onwards. Concern has been raised around the condition of St Alban’s Roman Catholic Secondary in Pontypool and funding could be put towards a new school.

John Tushingham, the council’s head of resources and planning, told the full council’s December meeting: “We need to honour the commitment made to the two Welsh medium primaries and the refurbishments delayed, and then a number of schools most in need of refurbishment.”

Refurbishment at Bryn Onnen is estimated to cost £5.7m and £5.4m will be needed for the Cwmbran school while the council could make a contribution to a new school for St Alban’s if the Roman Catholic Archdiocese and Welsh Government reach an agreement on funding.

On funding for church school buildings the officer said: “The archdioceses will have proposals for their schools and we will work closely with them particularly at the moment the Roman Catholic Archdiocese who would like investment for St Alban’s.”

Talks with Ysgol Gymraeg Cwmbran and the Archdiocese will start in the new year, said Mr Tushingham.

The programme approved by the council, which is subject to available funding, will aim to complete the two delayed schemes with an initial focus on Ysgol Bryn Onnen using available funding.

It also intends providing either new buildings or refurbishments at seven sites including secondaries at West Monmouth in Pontypool costing £27m, Abersychan £17m and Cwmbran High totalling £38m.

Coed Eva Primary in Cwmbran could get a new block costing £17m, a refurbishment of Pontnewydd Primary could need £8.7m while refurbs at Llanyravon and Croesyceiliog primaries would both need at least £4m though dependent on money forthcoming from new housing developments in the council’s next development plan the latter could move to a new build site.

Mr Tushingham said the condition of some secondaries have “deteriorated more rapidly” than anticipated when original plans were put in place in 2010/11 and there will be an earlier emphasis on addressing them than the four primaries.

The plan will also consider further growth of Welsh medium provision and the “increasing need” for pupil referral unit places for primary children unable to attend mainstream schools which could require £12m.

Councillor Richard Clark, the Labour cabinet member responsible for education, said the plan “does show we have got a strategic approach not just willy-nilly and crisis to crisis.”

He said the council had been supported financially by the Welsh Government and said: “We’ve got a record of doing this.”

The programme is part funded by the Welsh Government and Cllr Clark said costs still go beyond £140m. Business plans for each school will still need to be drawn up.

Councillor Lucy Williams said she was “very pleased” to see pupil referral places for primary which she said is a “much observed need”.

In response to a question from Cllr Colette Thomas Mr Tushingham said the council has yet to receive information on available funding from the Welsh Government and council leader Anthony Hunt said it is something the council is “very much” progressing in talks with it.

He said: “The report outlines, a lot done but a lot to do. We’ve got to get the balance of ambition but also realism. We don’t want to sell a false dream but neither do we not want to have enough ambition.”

Since 2010 the council has invested £120m in school buildings. That has included a new secondary at Croesyceiliog, three new primaries, the closure of sixth forms and supporting the establishment of the Learning Zone in Cwmbran, and in the most recent round the replacement Maendy Primary and extension of the Crownbridge Special School.

Source: South Wales Argus

Work has begun on a new £22m ‘ultra-sustainable’ special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in North London as demand for places in the borough has soared over the past decade.

The site will provide an additional 150 places in Brent to help prevent children having to be sent to schools outside of the borough.

Brent Council has appointed construction company REDS10 to build Wembley Manor School on London Road, which is expected to open its doors to pupils in September next year. The ‘state-of-the-art’ specialist school has been specifically designed for neurodivergent children.

Part of Brent’s SEND capital investment programme, Wembley Manor School is expected to deliver over 400 SEND places across the borough by 2025. It aims to reduce the need to send children to schools outside of the borough and the council expects to save up to £6m a year against the Dedicated School Grant.

The number of pupils in Brent who have special educational, health, and social care plans (EHCP) has risen by almost 15 per cent since 2020, compared with just over 10 per cent nationally. With this expected to continue rising over the next few years, there is a need to create more spaces in the borough.

Due to the lack of available places in the borough, there were 576 children and young people educated outside of Brent in 2021, with 180 in independent special schools, costing £7.2 million a year.

In the same year, there were 2,784 children and young people in Brent with EHCPs, which includes under fives up to those aged 25. By 2027, this number is expected to rise to 4,932, according to a government survey. This increase will have a significant impact on the demand for SEND school places.

Designed to be BREEAM Outstanding – the highest sustainability rating – the school will provide SEND teaching spaces, external play areas, sports facilities, as well as car parking and drop-off facilities. It will be manufactured at Reds10’s offsite factory facility in East Yorkshire before being transported to London Road to be assembled on-site.

Cabinet member for children and young people, Cllr Gwen Grahl, said: “Wembley Manor will be a much-needed school providing specialist SEND provision for neurodivergent children. […] This school will mean more children can be educated closer to home, providing better accessibility and stronger community networks.”

She added: “We have seen increasing demand for special provision in the borough, with the number of children needing education, health and care plans increasing by around 10 per cent every year over the past decade. Around 40 per cent of these children have an autism spectrum disorder.”

Source: LondonWorld

BAM has finally agreed a £71m contract price with the Department for Education to cover the first major RAAC concrete school rebuild.

St Leonards Catholic School in Durham will be rebuilt to the west of the school site, replacing the existing disused and RAAC-affected buildings once demolished.

The 110,000 sq ft three-storey school will include sports, assembly and dining halls and a wide range of departments, including specialist teaching spaces for art, technology and music at ground floor level.

The existing Springwell Hall will be reconfigured, refurbished and utilised as part of the redeveloped campus. The existing Sixth Form building will also be retained.

Ryder Architecture designed the new school that was originally expected to cost around £46m to deliver.

The new building is hoped to be ready for occupation during 2026.

Source: Construction Enquirer

Gloucestershire County Council has invested around £1.3 million in The Eastbrook Centre, a new site for Gloucestershire’s alternative provision school.

The Altus School is an alternative provision for children and young people who have struggled in a mainstream setting and have been, or are at risk of being, permanently excluded. There are six centres across the county providing education for different age ranges and needs.

Staff at the new Eastbrook Centre, for up to 48 Year 10 and 11 pupils, work with the young people and their families to support them to either complete their education at the Altus School through GCSEs or vocational qualifications, or to return to a mainstream school.

The county council spent around £1.3 million to buy and refurbish the centre, which was previously used as an independent school, to provide improved facilities like a science lab, art room, and specialist food technology and catering facilities.

Cllr Philip Robinson, cabinet member for education and bus transport at Gloucestershire County Council, said: “Improving the SEND and alternative provision offer for young people in the county is one of our top priorities. We’ve invested around £1.3 million in this new centre to support some of our most vulnerable young people back into education.

“Over the last few years, we have transformed our alternative provision to focus on earlier intervention and outreach work with pupils in mainstream schools who could be at risk of exclusion, to support them to remain and thrive in their current school.”

Emma Gundry, director of alternative provision and headteacher at The Altus School, said: “We have a fantastic team of dedicated staff who work with our pupils to support them to overcome some of the challenges they have had at school; to build relationships with them and support them to engage positively with education.”

In September 2023, the two alternative provision schools in the county were combined into one county-wide school, The Altus School, to improve the consistency and quality of the provision, focus on earlier intervention, and improve the facilities in alternative provision.

Source: Punchline

Fresh plans have been lodged for a new multi-million pound development for pupils with special educational needs on a demolished former school site. Stoke-on-Trent City Council wants to transform the old Middlehurst School site, in Chell, which closed 10 years ago.

The proposal would see a new SEN school building constructed to provide much-needed facilities for the nearby Watermill School, which ‘operates above its current capacity’. The vandal-plagued former school was demolished back in 2022, a year after the local authority secured £7.5 million of Government funding for the proposed development.

Similar plans, which included a sports hall, were then lodged and rubber-stamped in January 2023. However, revised proposals have now been put forward.

The planning application states that the new satellite facility will cater for 82 pupils aged between seven and 16 years old. Eight classrooms will be created along with a suite of specialist teaching spaces and staff facilities.

The new development would provide 71 car parking spots as well as seven disability spaces. It is hoped that, if the plans are approved, building work could begin by the end of the year with the development completed by around mid-2026.

The design and access statement says: “The current Watermill School is a SEN school and is located off Turnhurst Road. The school was part of the former BSF programme and was built at the same time and adjacent to the Ormiston Horizon Academy approximately 10 years ago.

“The existing Watermill School operates above its current capacity and has limited scope for extension on its exiting site. However, the Authority has suitable nearby land to develop a satellite provision which has been an element of the Authority’s long-standing strategy to retain former education land for potential future provision in this way.

“The main satellite expansion to Watermill School is a long established plan to bring back into use for SEN provision land formerly used for the Middlehurst Special School (prior to its closure on the formation of Watermill School).”

Members of the council’s planning committee are expected to approve the application next week.

Source: Stoke-on-Trent Live

A special blessing and service was held by school staff and pupils to officially open the new Saint Carlo Acutis building at St Cecilia’s RC High School, Longridge, Preston.

Local Priest from Alston Lane Parish Canon H Doyle and the Chair of Governors, Mr M Flynn, performed the official blessing and cutting of the ribbon.

Four new classrooms were built, along with three further internal classrooms modified, to manage a huge increase in demand for school places in the Longridge area – increasing St Cecilia’s intake from 97 to 120 pupils per year group.

St Cecilia’s is oversubscribed in every year group and is a thriving ‘outstanding’ Catholic high School. For two years in a row, we have celebrated the best GCSE results the school has ever seen.

The building project was constructed by local contractors W.M. Monks of Longridge.

Headteacher, Mrs H Hall, said: “The new building extension will make such a huge difference to what we can offer pupils, parents and the community at our school.”

Source: St Cecilia’s RC High School

Staff and pupils at Kennett Primary School have moved into a new purpose-built building within a housing development being delivered by home construction company Bellway.

The new school, off Howe Hill Road in Kennett Garden Village, has eight classrooms, each with their own outside space, a dedicated science, technology, engineering and mathematics space, playing fields and a staff car park.

Kennett Garden Village is a sustainable, high-quality neighbourhood which has been planned to include 500 homes as well as large areas of green open space and community infrastructure. Bellway Eastern Counties is building 160 homes within The Ferns at Kennett Garden Village, while Ashberry Homes — part of the Bellway Group — is delivering 164 homes at Lark’s Place at Kennett Garden Village.

The new school was funded by developer contributions. In total, Bellway contributed £4.5m to the project.

Scott Horsley, headteacher at Kennett Primary School, said: “We are incredibly grateful to Bellway for the significant part they have played in making this dream move to a new school building come true. It really is a fantastic space for members of our school community.

“Everyone is very excited about our new chapter in this fabulous new building and location, which was designed with input from us here at the school.

“The school’s former site was built in 1865, and it is with some sadness that we leave our original building behind. Through the curriculum, we have investigated historical events that have taken place since 1865; this has given our children a better understanding of chronology and the history of the place we have moved from.”

Eastern Counties sales manager Marrissa Gale said: “We are proud to have played a role in the delivery of a new custom-built school to give children in the village the best start to their education. It is good to know that the pupils will be studying in, and the staff teaching in, a modern environment which has been specifically designed to suit their needs.

“There were no playing fields on the former school site and Scott has told us that the staff and pupils are all excited about being able to get out to enjoy sport as part of the curriculum much more easily.

“The school fields at the new school site also feature an all-weather walking track around the space so that all of the children can enjoy exercise outside even through the winter months.”

Source: In Your Area

The first pupils at Limebrook Primary School are settling in after Morgan Sindall Construction’s Essex business handed the keys to Essex County Council at the start of the school year. 

The project was granted through the Essex County Council framework as part of the South Maldon Garden Suburb development – a site that boasts planning permission to deliver up to 1,000 homes, as well as retail space, green spaces and allotments, and sports and playing fields. Taylor Wimpey has been on site for five years at Handley Gardens and provided the serviced land where the school was built.

The tier one contractor has delivered 13 classrooms, a practical room, a studio, and an SEN room, accommodating 420 children in total, with the addition of a new nursery with capacity of 56 places for 0-4 year olds.

Pupils can also enjoy a large sports field, multi-use, hard-court games area, a habitat area, and wildflower meadows on-site, while parents will benefit from a car park with electric vehicle chargers.

Limebrook Primary School is set to deliver net-zero in operation by utilising Photovoltaic (PV) panels and air-source heat pumps which streamline energy efficiency, while the implemented mechanical and natural ventilation strategy and airtightness of the building retain a comfortable temperature for students and staff.

The project’s unique drive for sustainability continued from construction to completion. Through use of the data-driven tool CarboniCa, Morgan Sindall reduced carbon emissions by over 90%, utilising responsibly sourced, palm-oil-free HVO during the development work instead of diesel. By continuing Morgan Sindall’s award-winning 10 Tonne Challenge, the project saved 290.4 tonnes of CO2, which is the equivalent of heating over 107 UK homes for a whole year.

Throughout the school’s construction, the project team engaged with the local community in Maldon to deliver social value where it is most needed. This included employment of local scaffolding, brick-laying, and roofing contractors to bring the project to life.

In line with its Intelligent Solutions approach, Morgan Sindall has utilised BAMTech reinforcement which enhanced the structure’s strength and speed of construction. The school also features a steel frame with a mix of brickwork and Cedral Click cladding, boosting energy efficiency and durability.

Ryan Liversage, Area Director for Morgan Sindall Construction in Essex, said: “It is a huge accomplishment to hand over the keys to this new net-zero school. Not only has our hard work created an exceptional learning environment for Maldon’s next generation, but our sustainability initiatives continue to lead the way to a greener future for both construction and education.

“Limebrook Primary School’s success is testament to the great results of our collaboration with Essex County Council, and we can’t wait for the children to enjoy their new school in September.”

Councillor Tony Ball, Essex County Council Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning, and Employability, said: “This is an exciting moment for the council and the local community. The new school provides much needed school places in the area following an increase in new homes and the focus on net-zero is reflective of the council’s commitment to tackling climate change in Essex through sustainable construction. I can’t wait to hear how pupils are enjoying their new school.”

David Pelle, Land and Planning Director for Taylor Wimpey, said: “Schools, shops and other facilities are essential to creating new communities, so we are delighted to see that Limebrook Primary School is now open. We’re proud to have worked alongside Morgan Sindall at the outset of this project and it’s a testament to their expertise that it has been delivered at such high quality.

“We look forward to completing further community facilities, such as the Limebrook Sports Pavilion, in the coming months.”

 

The government has withdrawn funding for “a number of projects” granted school maintenance cash through its condition improvement fund, after identifying “serious irregularities” in their applications.

The Department for Education said it had launched “detailed investigations” into some successful bids and it had taken “immediate action”.

Around 4,500 academies in small trusts, sixth form colleges and voluntary-aided schools are eligible to bid for CIF cash for smaller maintenance projects, while bigger trusts and local authorities receive direct SCA funding.

Successful applicants for CIF funding for the 2024-25 year were informed in March, but the government then put some on hold to probe their applications further.

Some schools have now been told their projects will no longer be funded. The DfE has not said how many projects this affects, nor has it named the schools affected.

The department said it had invoked clause 23.1 in its grant funding agreement.

This states that bidders “must have regard to the need to ensure that” small and medium employers and voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations “are given fair, equal and proportionate access to any contracting opportunity”.

A DfE spokesperson said the government was “committed to ensuring that the school funding system is fit for purpose to ensure all schools receive the support they need to give every child the best life chances, whilst protecting taxpayers’ money.

“Following detailed investigations, we have taken immediate action to terminate funding to a number of projects in the condition improvement fund where serious irregularities had been identified within their applications.”

The spokesperson added the government had “strengthened our guidance to further protect schools and taxpayer funding from such risk and this government are committed to reviewing the system going forward”.

The guidance for 2025-26 has “introduced a new declaration for CIF 2025-26 that the accounting officer, or in the case of a sixth-form college or VA school a member of the senior management team, will need to read, print, sign and upload on the CIF portal with any CIF application”.

“This is to acknowledge their responsibility for the application, the management of any successful project, and meeting the requirements of the post approval guidance and complying with the terms and conditions.”

Schools that have had funding withdrawn “can apply for urgent capital support funding provided they meet the criteria”.

Source: Schools Week