A state-of-the-art primary school and nursery for more than 400 children will be built after Essex County Council (ECC) granted planning approval. This is to help meet increasing local demand for school places at the Limebrook Way development in Maldon.
The modern new-build facilities are being created as part of the South Maldon Garden Suburb development, which has planning permission to deliver up to 1,000 homes as well as retail space, green spaces and allotments, and sports and playing fields.
Essex County Council held a public consultation process last year with local residents for the construction of a new primary school and nursery on the proposed site to the south of the B1018 Limebrook Way in south Maldon. Following on from this, and a successful pre-application consultation with stakeholders, a planning application was submitted in October 2022 with approval granted in January 2023.
The two-form primary school will accommodate 420 children in total, while the nursery will provide 56 places for 0-4 year olds. Work is due to start this summer and complete in time for the 2024 academic year.
Ingleton Wood, a leading property and construction consultancy based in Colchester, has been appointed to provide multi-disciplinary services, including architectural, planning, civil and structural engineering, and mechanical and electrical (M&E) engineering.
Rebecca Howard, associate planner at Ingleton Wood, said: “Sustainability will be at the core of the primary school and nursery at the Limebrook Way development in Maldon.
“Working closely with Morgan Sindall and Essex County Council, we will use our multi-disciplinary expertise to deliver strikingly modern, net-zero buildings that will benefit from solar electricity panels, electric vehicle charging points, thermal mass storage to absorb, store and release heat, as well as a combination of mechanical and natural ventilation.
“We were pleased to help secure planning approval within a short space of time with Essex County Council, and look forward to delivering the development.”
Morgan Sindall Construction has been appointed as the main contractor for the project by Essex County Council. Morgan Sindall has worked collaboratively with ECC and Ingleton Wood to inform the school’s advanced, net zero carbon in operation design, which includes the entire site being diesel free.
This environmentally friendly approach has been encapsulated in a Sustainability Charter, with construction methods and materials designed to minimise the school’s emissions.
Morgan Sindall Construction’s Essex area director, Andrew Harper-Rowe, said: “We’ve worked closely with Essex County Council on a number of high-end educational developments, and we can’t wait to bring this collaboration and expertise to Limebrook Way’s new primary school.
“Once complete, this net zero educational establishment will make a real difference in the local community, providing generations of pupils with sustainable school places and a facility that’s tailored to the needs of those living and working in Maldon.”
The new school will be an academy as required by Government legislation. Essex County Council has launched an ongoing procurement process for the academy sponsor.
The project is being funded by Section 106 contributions and ECC borrowing.
Cllr Tony Ball, ECC Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning and Employability, said: “Ensuring every child in Essex has access to an excellent education is at the heart of our Everyone’s Essex strategy and at the forefront of our vision for levelling up the County.
“This new facility will provide high quality primary provision, as well as nursery spaces, for the local community and will use net zero enhancements for reducing the carbon emissions that can be caused by school buildings.”
Cllr Lesley Wagland OBE, ECC Cabinet Member for Economic Renewal, Infrastructure and Planning, said: “To accommodate housing growth across Essex, including in Maldon, infrastructure must be improved to allow for the increase in the County’s population. This includes ensuring all children in Essex have access to local, modern and high-quality learning environments, which is what these new premises will provide.
“Securing planning approval is a significant step forward and I look forward to seeing the build progress.”
Ingleton Wood is one of the largest property and construction consultancies covering East Anglia, Northern England, the Midlands, Central England, London and the South East, with offices in Colchester, Billericay, Cambridge, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford and London.
The Practice’s services include architecture, sustainability, building surveying, building services engineering, planning, interior design, civil and structural engineering, quantity surveying, project management, and health and safety.