New Waltham school set for new nursery and improved classrooms thanks to Council funding

New Waltham Academy is set to expand its existing provision thanks to a £2.3 million refurbishment scheme which will see new classrooms and the construction of a brand new nursery.

The academy, is relocating some of the classrooms and having new buildings added to provide the correct space for cohorts in the coming years.

The scheme, managed by the Council’s delivery partner EQUANS, will construct new accommodation on land purchased from the neighbouring church over a decade ago with the works having a completion date of later this year.

There will be a number of additions to the site which when finished, including:

• Relocation of Reception Classrooms into new build accommodation which will have access to bespoke outdoor play and integral toilets
• Relocation of two Key Stage 1 Classrooms into new accommodation
• Creation of a New Staffroom

• Creation of a specialist space to enable the academy to deliver a wide range of lessons such as Nutrition, Cooking, Art and Technology as well as small group intervention
• A New Build Nursery to replace the current mobile accommodation which will include bespoke outdoor play and integral toilets
• Reorganisation of circulation space to ensure pupils a more cohesive route around the site
• Dedicated SEN Group Space
• Enhanced Library Space

Students have been busy designing new health and safety posters promoting the health and safety measures and good practice whilst the build is on site.

Speaking about the expansion, Louise Clarke, Co-head at New Waltham Academy, said: “This is great news for the school. We can’t wait to welcome not just new intake students but also our existing cohort to our brand new classrooms and nursery and we’re thrilled about that.”

Councillor Margaret Cracknell, Portfolio Holder Children and Education, said: “This will be a breath of fresh air to this school. They are doing fabulous work with these children and deserve the right space to develop this further.

“A new staff room, nursery, library and SEN space is wonderful and will no doubt prove invaluable in the coming years.”

The project has been funded through the Local Authority’s Basic Needs allocation, Section 106 contributions, a contribution from the school and corporate resources.

The Basic Need allocations are capital funds released from Central Government to Local Authorities for the provision of school places. An Education Section 106 is a legally binding agreement between local authorities and housing developers to mitigate any impact that may arise to the school estate from new housing.

Main image caption: Top row, from left, Jason Clark, Director, Topcon; Steve Jackson, Building Surveyor, EQUANS; Simon Dixon, Contract Administrator, EQUANS; Councillor Philip Jackson, Leader of the Council and Richard Griffin, Site Manager, Topcon. Bottom row, from left, Louise Clarke, Co-Headteacher, New Waltham Academy; Jayne Perry, Co-Headteacher, new Waltham Academy and Councillor Margaret Cracknell, Portfolio Holder for Children and Education, NELC.