Work is underway on a new £17 million energy efficient school which will benefit thousands of Liverpool children.
The new Archbishop Beck Sports College is being built by Willmott Dixon Construction on the former Long Lane council depot in Fazakerley.
The scheme is part of the Liverpool School Investment Programme, devised as a rescue package following the scrapping of Wave Six of Liverpool’s Building Schools for the Future (BSF) project.
It will be environmentally friendly, with a solar panel roof to generate electricity, and will also feature a sports hall with six courts, a 3G pitch, a theatre and recording and dance studios.
The council is committed to making sure the school is ‘Made in Liverpool’, and has set a target of 62 percent of the project budget being spent with firms in Liverpool, and 72 percent within the City Region.
Mayor Joe Anderson said: “We are determined to make sure every child in the city gets the best possible start in life, and a good education in good surroundings is crucial.
“As Mayor, improving schools is a priority and we are also determined to make sure the construction project benefits local firms as well, so we maximise the benefits to the city.”
Councillor Jane Corbett, Cabinet member for education, said: “This is brilliant news for current and future generations of young people who will attend Archbishop Beck.
“It is part of our ambition to make sure that new schools are closely tied to the city’s regeneration and help build stronger communities.”
Head Paul Dickinson said: “We are absolutely delighted that work has started on the school and our students are starting to see their dreams become reality.
“We have held detailed discussions with the whole community, including parents and pupils whose opinions we have sought and acted upon in terms of the design.
“The whole community of Archbishop Beck would like to thank Mayor Joe Anderson, Councillor Jane Corbett and the city council for all their efforts in making our new school a reality.
“As a school who lost out on Government funding at the last minute, we are immensely grateful for everyone’s determination to ensure our new school, with outstanding new facilities for the students and community of Archbishop Beck, is built.”
The school is set to open in September 2014.
