GRAHAM has started works on a major new-build redevelopment of Cranbourne School in Basingstoke.
The project forms part of the Department for Education’s (DfE) School Rebuilding Programme. It’s being delivered by GRAHAM in partnership with Hampshire County Council to create a modern education facility on the current school site.
GRAHAM’s official groundbreaking ceremony on 29th September was attended by key representatives from the DfE, Hampshire County Council and GRAHAM, along with school staff and students.
To mark the start of construction, students proudly held spades in their house colours as they broke ground during the ceremony. Cranbourne staff joined them in celebrating this exciting milestone for the school community.
Located off Wessex Close in a residential part of the town, the project will replace seven existing buildings, six of which date back to the 1960s and some containing RAAC (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete), with a single new three and two-storey education campus, combining teaching spaces and sporting facilities under one roof within a 6.8-hectare site.
Having broken ground, preparatory works are currently underway to pave the way for the main construction programme and foundation works later in the year.
The new 10,000 sq m building will house music, art and design, and technology spaces, as well as an activity studio. A sports hall and swimming pool will be based on the ground floor.
It will also include an admin suite, spaces designed to support pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and general teaching spaces on the first floor, with ICT, humanities, maths and science classrooms situated on the second.
The new complex will include separate school and community entrances, creating opportunities for local sports groups to use the swimming pool and sports hall facilities. Primary schools will also be able to access the pool for swimming lessons during the school day.
New sports pitches, reconfigured staff parking and a cycle shelter to the west of the site will also be included in the rebuild. The development will incorporate sustainability measures including green roofs and solar PV canopies to improve environmental performance and support the school’s long-term operational efficiency.
The project marks the third scheme GRAHAM has been appointed to under the DfE’s Construction Framework 2021, following ongoing work on The Castle Rock School in Leicestershire and Oasis Academy Temple Quarter in Bristol.
Pat O’Hare, Regional Director at GRAHAM, said:
We’re pleased to be working with Hampshire County Council and the Department for Education to deliver Cranbourne School.
Projects like this are about creating places where young people can thrive. The new school has been designed to provide high-quality teaching and sports facilities that will benefit students for generations, while the sports hub will also create opportunities for the wider community to make use of the site.
Now that we have broken ground, we’re looking forward to working collaboratively with the project team to deliver a school that meets the needs of both students and the local community.
Sangeeta Redgrave, Deputy Director for Construction for London and the South East at the DfE, said:
Buildings are really important, we all love buildings, we all love making sure that they all happen, but really it’s the stuff that happens in and around the buildings that are the most meaningful things that help fuel and enable young people’s ambitions to actually come to fruition.
Sarah Conlon, Head Teacher at Cranbourne School, said:
We are delighted to announce the start of Cranbourne’s rebuild, a chance to create modern, new facilities that will broaden our curriculum, improve specialist spaces and technology, and, together with students, families, staff, the Department for Education, GRAHAM and Hampshire County Council, deliver lasting educational, social and environmental benefits for our whole community.
