Southampton City Councillors were joined by Morgan Sindall Construction and other partners to celebrate the ‘topping out’ of the new St Mark’s Church of England School.
The £39.8m expansion of the existing school, which was demolished last year, will deliver the city’s first four to 16 all-through school.
Once completed, the new school will create 900 new secondary school places, with the all-through school benefitting from a pre-school nursery, a two-form entry primary school and six-form entry secondary school.
The development includes air-conditioned classrooms, an outdoor science courtyard for outside experiments and a new sports building for primary and secondary school pupils, alongside natural and artificial grass pitches.
Cllr James Baillie, cabinet member for education, said: ‘This project demonstrates our commitment to improving the learning of our children across the city by providing excellent education opportunities. The pupils of St Mark’s C of E School will benefit from best-in-class education facilities, offering greater learning opportunities and ensuring children get the best possible start in life.
‘We want a city in which people can start well and have happy and fulfilling lives in a place they’re proud to live, learn, work and hand to future generations. We are getting Southampton moving by creating a city of opportunity for all so we can be a happy, hopeful, and ambitious city. I want to thank all those involved in this amazing project and I look forward to seeing secondary school pupils starting their first ever term here in Autumn next year.’
Pupils currently attending the primary school were moved across to a specifically designed temporary school building in November last year, with primary pupils expected to moce into their brand-new school in Spring 2022 and Year 7 pupils expected to move into the secondary school from September 2022.
Clifford Kinch, area director of Morgan Sindall, added: ‘We’re delighted to reach this major milestone on the St Mark’s CE All-Though School and see this landmark project really taking shape, which is testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved. The new school will provide first-class educational facilities for both current and future generations of pupils to enjoy. We look forward to continuing our close working relationship with Southampton City Council for the next stage of this much-needed school which will serve the Southampton community.’
Photo supplied by Southampton City Council