First YORbuild Project Secured


Allenbuild have secured their first project via the YORbuild construction framework, a new £5.0m sixth form centre at Ridgewood School, Scawsby for Doncaster Council.

The new 2-storey building will provide 300 new places enabling sixth-formers to stay on at Ridgewood School for the first time. The post-16 centre has a contemporary design, shaped like an arrow it also takes potential future redevelopment into account.

The sustainable new building will incorporate a raft of green features, including a rain water collection system on the roof which will provide water for the toilets, and solar electricity generators.

Construction work commences in June and will run until summer next year, with the first intake of pupils scheduled for September 2011.

The school has specialist status in both engineering and related technologies and applied learning. It has been officially designated a high performing specialist school.

Allenbuild director Don Stewart commented "We are looking forward to working with both the school and Doncaster Council over the duration of the project to turn the school's vision into reality by providing a modern and sustainable new building. We will also be working hard to maximize the benefits this investment can bring to the local economy, particularly in respect of employment, training and supplier opportunities."

Ridgewood School Headteacher, Mr Chris Hoyle said: "This is an important milestone in a very long journey for the school. We have consistently sought to be allowed to finish what we started in terms of providing all-through education from 11 to 18 or 19; to offer our 16-plus pupils the same choice as others in terms of whether to stay with us or move on for their post 16 provision; and the chance to reap the benefits for the whole school community of having post-16 students on-site, in academic and much wider terms. The provision being developed is innovative, exciting and, by being strongly tied to our specialist agendas, an addition to the wider resource of the area through the competitive acquisition of additional, external funding. “