Construction work to complete the £4.4million expansion of the Ofsted-rated outstanding Addington School is entering its final phase.
Modules for the single-storey block at the SEND school in Woodley have now been delivered, as final fit out now begins ahead of completion in the summer.
The buildings were delivered to the school in Woodlands Avenue mostly during the February half-term to minimise disruption to the students.
Modular construction
They were built off-site by modular construction specialists Reds10 at their facility in Kelleythorpe, near Hull, before being transported to site.
This method reduces the number of vehicle trips required as part of the project compared to traditional construction and will help Wokingham Borough Council towards its goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2030.
Now the building will continue to be fitted out on site with completion expected in late May.
What is in the new building?
It will include four classrooms, a café and social/breakout areas, will improve the lives of 50 more young people, due to the increased capacity, by giving them the best SEND education possible in the Wokingham borough.
It will boost the school’s capacity to more than 250 students and means more children with special educational needs and disabilities from the borough will be able to be educated closer to home, making families’ lives easier by reducing journey times, as well as reducing the council’s travel costs.
Transformation
“The transformation going on at Addington School to expand it and offer its outstanding education to more of the borough’s SEND young people is crucial to them and their families,” said Cllr UllaKarin Clark, executive member for children’s services.
“With the new block set few completion in just a few months away it’s fantastic to see the project gathering pace.
“Existing students will be able to watch on, with the main building now in place, and see it take its final form before they are able to start using it in the summer term.”
The new single-storey block will be officially opened in September 2020. It follows construction and opening of two new multi-use games areas (MUGAs), a new sensory path and an expanded car park at the end of September 2019.
These were constructed over the summer to ensure pupils had all the facilities they need upon returning to school for the Autumn term.
