York pupils visit new school site (From York Press)

York pupils visit new school site

2:27pm Wednesday 8th September 2010 in

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HUNDREDS of pupils got their first glimpse of their new school building as work continues apace at York’s Clifton with Rawcliffe Primary School.

The £9.7 million project, in Eastholme Drive, will house 630 pupils within the new Clifton With Rawcliffe Federation School, bringing them together under one roof rather than being spread between the existing Rawcliffe Infant and Clifton Without Junior sites.

On Tuesday and Wednesday this week pupils and staff at the school got to see the steel structure going up at the new school which they are due to start moving into in a year’s time. Main contractor Shepherd Construction, which is currently around a quarter of the way through erecting the steel frame of the 3200m² building, explained to the visitors that 140 tonnes of steel will be used in total.

When built, the school will provide state-of-the-art education and sports facilities which will enable both schools to be brought under one roof. In addition, new car parking, play areas, multi-use games areas and a segregated pedestrian entrance will also be provided.

While the first pupils are due to move into the new facilities on Eastholme Drive next September, work is scheduled to fully complete in November 2011. John Butterfield, Shepherd Construction’s project leader said: “With the steel frame now going up, the shape of the new school will emerge rapidly and we look forward to sharing future milestones in the project with the pupils and staff over the coming months.”

Maggie Tansley, head of planning and resources at City of York Council, said: "We are delighted with progress on the new building which will provide the children of the area with a modern school on a single site. These visits will allow pupils to see how their school is constructed, something which will engage their interest and can be used to enhance their learning.”

Chris Wigley, head teacher at Clifton with Rawcliffe School, said: “Teaching staff are running a science and technology week in conjunction with these trips in order to exploit the children’s enthusiasm and new found knowledge. After all, we potentially have the next generation of architects, building engineers and quantity surveyors amongst our pupil body so it is great to give them this unique opportunity.”