BUILDING work is about to begin on the £4 million redevelopment of an old school site in York, and bosses have promised an employment drive to get local people work on the project.
Builders Sewell Construction are about to start on the 45-week project to transform Burnholme Community College into a community hub with a hall, library, cafe, nursery, meeting spaces and recording studios for Tang Hall SMART.
With the project ready to start, Sewell and employment partner Compass are running a recruitment drive so any construction jobs can be filled by local people.
City of York’s Cllr Nigel Ayre said: “It is fantastic to see work to build the Centre @ Burnholme is about to begin. Once completed, this will be a great community facility.”
The old drama block will be demolished in the first two weeks, before the foundations are laid for the community hub by the end of July, and the steel frame is up by the end of September. The building should be watertight by February 2018 and the main hall refurbished before handover in May 2018.
The extension and refurbishment is part of plans for the site, which include an 80-bed care home, medical centre, sports facility and new homes.
Sue Williamson, founder and managing director of Tang Hall SMART, said: “This new venture is going to give us a chance to really scale-up and reach more people. Having something bespoke in such a lovely new building on a site of such historical significance is inspiring for our group.
“Burnholme Community College, which used to be here, was a lovely school and there is a continuity of that on this site. The school started it off and the community hub will create a lasting legacy.”
Groups which use the existing building - Burnholme Nursery, Tang Hall SMART, York Community Church and sports groups - will stay open during the work, as will Hempland Kids’ Club. The builders have promised no deliveries will arrive during school drop off and pick up times. Anyone interested in the job opportunities should contact Liam Bennett at Compass on bennettl@compassr.co.uk.
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