Morgan Sindall Construction wins £9m contract for Calthorpe Park School

Morgan Sindall Construction has been awarded a £9m project by Hampshire County Council to deliver a new extension for Calthorpe Park School in Fleet, north-east Hampshire.

The local area has seen considerable development with new housing and a modern leisure centre recently constructed. This in turn has increased demand at the highly regarded Calthorpe Park Secondary School where Hampshire County Council is investing money into providing 300 new school places for 11-16-year-old students over the next five years. This development brings further opportunities for enhancement of general teaching and specialist facilities, broadening the curriculum and allowing for greater community use.

The new block forms a two-storey impressive, 1,799 square metre building which will house a dedicated maths department, as well as two state-of-the-art ICT / technology classrooms. There will also be a new specialist ceramics studio and communal dining area, increasing facilities for community use.

The project enhances the existing campus by providing additional landscaped green social spaces for outside dining, teaching and a performance space with a new amphitheatre for outside productions.

Hampshire County Council Property Services has designed a thoughtful, timeless and practical building that complements and adds to the existing campus providing modern, energy efficient and delightful learning environments.

The maths classrooms form an orderly rhythmical brick façade with the ceramics room providing drama to the entrance with textured brickwork and a copper oriel window.

As part of the works, Morgan Sindall Construction will also carry out re-modelling to the existing school to provide two new science labs and additional library space in the heart of the existing school.

The main contractor was procured through the Southern Construction Framework (SCF) which offers support to public sector construction projects across the south of England.

Morgan Sindall Construction will ensure that their team contributes to social value initiatives throughout the duration of the project, and has developed an employment skills plan in collaboration with Hampshire County Council and Calthorpe Park School.

This includes providing training opportunities for a number of construction apprentices from the local area, as well as work placements for students and those outside of education. Informative events and lectures will also be held at the school to provide support for pupils interested in a future career in construction.

Construction will be carried out during the current school year, working to strict safety standards given the restrictions of coronavirus and a live site. Work is scheduled to complete on the project by next September, in time for the 2021-2022 academic year.

This is the third project being delivered for Hampshire County Council during Covid-19, alongside the extension for Shepherds Down SEN primary school and the new Stoneham Park primary academy. The latter was handed over within only a few days of the original completion date, despite significant logistical challenges posed by the pandemic. The council has praised the main contractor for its safe working delivery and the high quality finish of Stoneham Park.

Clifford Kinch, area director for Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “Hampshire is proving an increasingly attractive place to live and that’s reflected in the new residential developments in train across the region. For these growing communities to be sustainable and thrive, it’s vital that local authorities continue to proactively invest in their school estates to match this new demand.

“We are delighted to have begun work on the new extension for Calthorpe Park School and to collaborate with our project partners on an employment skills plan which will introduce exciting new career opportunities to the area.”

Martin Amos, joint headteacher at the school, said: “Even within the current context these are positive and exciting times for Calthorpe Park. We are enormously grateful for our collaborative and supportive relationship with Hampshire County Council. With Morgan Sindall Construction, we have found a partner that understands both the educational context and the specific school’s vision, standards and expectations. We know that this will be a productive and dynamic relationship over the next few months.”