Plans to build Leicestershire’s second carbon-neutral primary school have been given the green light.
The £9.3m primary will provide school places for children living in the new 924 home Airfield Farm development in Market Harborough.
The eco-friendly 210-place school will include teaching spaces for pupils with special educational needs, a multi-use play area, nature areas and parking and drop-off spaces. Bat and bird boxes will be installed to encourage wildlife.
The school is being built on behalf of Leicestershire County Council by contractor Willmott Dixon with what’s known as section 106 funding from developers William Davis and Taylor Wimpey and money from the Government’s Basic Need Funding for schools
Technology such as air source heat pumps and photovoltaic panels to provide power, as well as careful consideration of building materials, will help the school become ‘zero-carbon’.
Councillor Deborah Taylor, cabinet member for children and families, said: “This is great news! This school will be a welcome addition to this new community, providing much-needed school places and a lovely setting for learning.
“We are committed to addressing climate change and it’s schemes like these that will support Leicestershire becoming a net zero county by 2045. We look forward to seeing this new school taking shape.”
The school has been built in such a way that it could be extended to take up to 420 pupils in the future if needed.
An academy trust to run it is due to be announced this autumn and a phased opening is planned from 2024 starting with reception children, with the school reaching capacity by 2030.
The build is hot on the heels of the council’s first ‘zero-carbon’ school, Hollycroft Primary in Normandy Way, Hinckley, which is set to welcome its first pupils this autumn. Also built by Willmott Dixon, it will be run by the OWLS Academy Trust.
