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Search for£7m eco friendly school will be 'flagship'
Wednesday, November 12, 2008, 09:16
When it is completed, the new complex of 12 classrooms will be one of the first zero carbon primary schools to be built in the country.
With more than 330 pupils, Dartington has grown into one of the biggest primary schools in the county and the village has been waiting for a promised new school to replace the flooding-prone complex next to the Bidwell Brook for more than five years.
Workmen moved on to the site to begin ground works during the half term break and the new school is due to be completed by Christmas 2009.
Dartington head teacher Jill Mahon said: "It is a stunning design and will truly be a unique building.
"I believe it will be a flagship school which will be extremely environmentally-friendly."
The new school will have 12 classes and will provide an all-weather pitch, a large playing area and landscaped grounds.
There will be four separate clusters of buildings which are being constructed from pre-fabricated sustainable timber panels. They will be insulated with natural wood fibre and clad in larch weatherboarding.
The heating is being provided by air source heat pumps with ventilation via a heat recovery system.
The electricity will come from photovoltaic panels mounted on the roof and the water will be heated by solar power.
Rain water will be collected for re-use within the school and a sustainable drainage system is being incorporated within the extensive landscaping which includes reed beds and ponds to filter grey water.
The project includes £250,000 to improve pedestrian access so more children and parents will be able to use sustainable forms of transport to get to the school.
It will replace the existing dilapidated and flood-prone school buildings and brings together the Foundation Stage and the main school on the same site.
Ms Mahon, who took up her post in September, said: "We have already begun to look at what teaching and learning will be like in the new building. It is a fantastic opportunity.
"The eco building fits in very well with our school culture and it will really be an amazing learning tool for the children."
Local county councillor Trevor Pennington said: "I am very pleased that work on the new Dartington Primary School is starting. This has been long awaited.
"Teachers, governors, parents and I as Dartington's county councillor have finally achieved our much deserved goal which has been long and hard but well worth all our team efforts.
"The new school will be a state-of-the-art building and is likely to become a model for other new Devon schools."
Devon County Council's deputy leader and executive councillor for children's services, John Smith, said it was part of an ambitious three-year building programme worth £235million which would have a real impact across the county.
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