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| Part of the new school |
Parade celebrates school opening
Staff and pupils at a Newcastle school are so overjoyed about their recent move into a fantastic new building, they're planning a special parade through the town to tell everyone.
St Giles' and St George's Primary School, in Orme Road, Newcastle, will celebrate in style after they moved from their old Victorian premises in Barracks Road to their new premises over Christmas.
To commemorate the "new start", staff and pupils will enjoy a special church service at St Giles' Church, on Wednesday 5th April. This will be followed by a parade through the town, down Church Street to Orme Road, where invited guests will take part in an opening ceremony.
Lynne Evans, headteacher at St Giles and St George's Primary School, said the new building is an amazing facility: "We're just about settled in now, as we started moving equipment just before Christmas. We've been teaching as normal but it does take a little time to get used to the new surroundings."
Lynne said that pupils and staff were more than happy to adjust to the extra space now at their disposal, especially the grass field outside their front door: "Where we were before, we had a bumpy playground, with a main road beyond the wall at the front, and a busy pub beer garden at the back and a lorry park on the other two sides. Now we have a lovely big field and the children will have grass to run around on for the first time in years - it's just brilliant."
As well as plenty of open playing space, the school features a courtyard area, which will be used for outdoor teaching and as a general quiet area. There is an area set aside for an allotment, which will grow soft fruit, flowers and vegetables. Sustainability and 'green' issues will also be promoted to pupils, thanks to a composting area and recycling facilities.
Staffordshire County Council was responsible for the new school building. The Council's Joint Schools Property Division led the project from conception and appointing a contractors right through to designing the school and managing the building process, which was carried out by Adonis Ltd.
Councillor Robert Simpson, Cabinet Member for Children and Lifelong Learning, said: "The school is a very impressive facility and has gone down a storm with pupils and staff alike. The extra space provided by the new building will no doubt contribute to both formal learning and extra-curricular activities at the school."
Page Last Modified:
30/01/2007 16:05:23
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