Work is due to get underway on the first all-through school in Essex next week.
The new £34milllion school, which will be sponsored by The Boswells Academy Trust, will operate as one school, but with two separate buildings for primary and secondary pupils.
The project comes as Essex County Council predictions show an anticipated increase in the demand for school places as the Beaulieu development in Springfield, Chelmsford, continues to grow.
The 420-place primary school and 56-place early years building will be completed in time for a first cohort of pupils in September 2018, while the neighbouring secondary school building will be ready the following year.
The school will initially cater for up to 900 secondary school pupils (180 per year group), growing to 1,200 (240 per year group) in future years.
It will also feature much improved community sports facilities, funded by Chelmsford City Council. These will include additional multi-use courts, an activity studio and changing rooms.
The work, being carried out by Kier Construction, will officially start after a ground-breaking ceremony at the site on Wednesday, October 11.
Councillor Ray Gooding, Essex County Council’s cabinet member for education, said: “We have an excellent track record of investment in schools, including spending about £74million on 2,500 new places for the 2017/18 academic year.
“As a result, we were able to offer a record percentage of pupils a place at their parents’ preferred primary and secondary schools for this September, which is a fantastic achievement.
“We recognise that more investment is still needed to keep pace with the population growth in Essex and plan to spend a further £230million on creating new school places over the next three years.
“These plans for Beaulieu are a big part of that and I am delighted construction is now starting on the county’s first ever all-through school.”
Paul Banks, executive headteacher at The Boswells School and CEO of The Boswells Academy Trust, added: “We are delighted to have been chosen to sponsor Essex’s first ever all-through school and we are extremely excited by the educational opportunities that the new school will bring to the area.
“Our trust has an excellent track record in achieving superb results for our students and we are looking forward to working with Essex County Council to provide an outstanding provision for the new community at Beaulieu.”
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