A SIGNIFICANT milestone has been celebrated as work starts on a new £6.9 million primary school in Larkhill.

Pupils from St Michael’s Church of England Primary School in nearby Figheldean, who will be relocating to the new school, were joined by the Right Rev Edward Condry, Bishop of Rambsury for a turf cutting ceremony yesterday (Monday, June 26).

The new school will be open by September 2018 ready for the rebasing of army families back to Larkhill. By 2020 Larkhill Garrison will be the third largest in the UK.

Construction company Morgan Sindall has been awarded the contract to build the new school which will accommodate up to 420 pupils and include a nursery, which will have 60 places.

The school will be a two storey building with four main areas consisting of the school hall, two class room blocks and it will include a linked element of a ‘school street’ along with support accommodation.

"This is such an exciting time: a new school of this size and calibre is a resource for the whole of our community, our partner schools and colleagues but, above all, it is the future for our children. Salisbury Plain Academies is delighted that the Bishop and so many guests have joined us to mark the beginning of that future,” said the CEO of Salisbury Plain Academies Helen Mathieson.

Jon Daines, the area director at Morgan Sindall, added: "The start of a new project is an exciting time for all involved; as it marks the beginning of a journey. We at Morgan Sindall have completed a large number of projects across the education sector and our team understands how to work collaboratively with local communities to achieve great results.

"We are thrilled to begin this journey with the Academy and Wiltshire Council. Brick by brick, the new school will become a vital learning resource for families and children in Larkhill and we are looking forward to handing over the project in September 2018."

The construction period given for the project is 58 weeks.