COUNCILLORS have welcomed the opening of a new school building in Twickenham, the first to operate as part of the PFI agreement to create new places for young children.

The new Trafalgar Infant School building is now open at the Meadway in Twickenham. It is the first site to become operational as part of a six-school PFI agreement between the LEA and Jarvis Accommodation Services. In February 2002, Richmond upon Thames Council selected Jarvis plc as preferred bidder for its major PFI project to expand its primary schools and meet growing demand from parents for places in the borough's primary schools.

The project hopes to provide an additional 160 additional permanent reception class places, 1120 extra primary school places in all, throughout the LEA

While existing Trafalgar Infant and Junior School premises at Elmsleigh Road are being re-furbished under the same PFI agreement, the entire infants school now occuies the new Meadway site.

In 2004 when all work is predicted to finish, the building will become an Early Years Centre, accommodating the Trafalgar Infant reception classes, along with a nursery, day care and baby care. The site will also include newly laid out playing fields.

Cabinet members and local ward councillors welcomed the completion of the school .

Councillor Geoffrey Samuel, Cabinet Member for Schools, said: "This primary school is of an exceptionally high standard for pupils and the early years in Richmond upon Thames, and we look forward to the completion of all the other schools within the PFI agreement.

"We are committed to improving the standard of primary school education across the borough, and the PFI project will help us to achieve this."

Don Woodhead, Senior Project Manager at Jarvis Construction (UK) Ltd, said: "We are delighted with the results so far at Trafalgar Early Years Centre. We look forward to continued, successful partnership with Richmond Borough through all the new school building in the PFI project."

Headteacher Lynne Thompson added: "The deadlines were very tight for the project, but luckily I have brilliant staff who gave up some of their Easter break to make sure the children and parents had a great first impression of our new school which provides us with a high quality learning environment. Jarvis have been incredibly helpful and we have really appreciated the level of support their staff have given us all as we get used to our new premises. "

Marshgate Primary School and Kew Riverside Primary School are the two new schools to be built under the scheme, while Trafalgar Infants, Trafalgar Juniors, St James RC Primary School and St Mary's CE Primary are being expanded. The progress of the project is being closely monitored by the Council.

The Trafalgar Early Years Centre will eventually accommodate a 39 place nursery, 36 place day care and baby care centre, and 39 places for 'wrap-around care' for children of school age who need care outside school hours, in addition to the three Trafalgar Infant School reception classes.

Two brand new schools in Kew and Richmond, together with significant expansion of three existing schools in Twickenham, will provide an extra 1120 new high quality primary school places across the borough.

The project also includes the provision of three new special educational needs units attached to the schools for pupils with hearing impairment, pupils with difficulties on the autistic spectrum and for pupils with emotional and behavioural difficulties. New nursery and wrap-around care facilities will also be provided as part of the project.

Twickenham Cllr Bob King said: "The completion of the Trafalgar Infants building in the Meadway is the first fruits of the PFI scheme which was set in train by the previous Liberal Democrat administration. It is excellent new provision for the children of Twickenham and its qualities bode well for the rest of the Primary PFI programme."

May 30, 2003 10:30