Oct 6, 2021, Devizes Gazette and Herald: Wiltshire Council approve £38m [$52M] Silverwood School extension https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/19628952.wiltshire-council-approve-38m-silverwood-school-extension/
Southern England
PLANS for the £38m extension to the Silverwood super school have got the go ahead.
The bid by Wiltshire Council, to extend the former Rowdeford School to provide space for 350 special educational needs pupils was given the green light by members of the authority’s strategic planning committee yesterday….
Silverwood’s executive headteacher Sean McKeown said it would provide “the best quality education for our children and young people”.
“At Silverwood we are constructing a creative, exciting and diverse curriculum that focuses on the uniqueness of each individual,” he said….
Cabinet member for SEND, Jane Davies said the plans were the culmination of years of planning and discussions between the local authority, parents and schools.
She added that they were part of the council’s wider aspirations to support children throughout the county.
Councillors unanimously voted to approve the plans which could cost up to £38m.
It was estimated that the build would cost £33m but in July this year, cabinet agreed to set aside a further £5.5m in capital cash for the project.
This increase in the budget has been levelled at the “extreme volatility” in the construction industry around the cost of materials.
It is hoped that the build will be completed by September 2023.
The St Nicholas and Larkrise schools are due to stay open until the new school is ready for pupils and the time is “appropriate to consider children/young people transitioning to the new site at Rowdeford”.
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