Ingleton Wood helps primary school realise expansion plans

A school in the London Borough of Bexley can now increase its number of pupils by a third after seeing its £4.5m three-year expansion plan through to fruition.

Thanks to the work undertaken by Ingleton Wood, the capacity to accommodate additional pupils has now been added to Bursted Wood Primary School in Bexleyheath.

Nine extra classrooms have been built plus a new reception area and frontage, IT suite, a library and study space on the site adjacent to the school, meaning the school can now accommodate 630 pupils.

The school was oversubscribed and extremely popular, so the borough council requested that governors and the Senior Leadership Team of the school consider expansion. Once agreed, they and Ingleton Wood liaised closely with parents and staff to achieve the successful redevelopment.

As a result of the collaboration Ingleton Wood produced the design for the school’s beautiful metal and polycarbonate cladding to the front, which reflects the colours of the environment around them.

Diana Dryland, Head Teacher at Bursted Wood, said: “After three years of much collaborative working with Ingleton Wood and the Project Manager from the London Borough of Bexley, we now have a new building for our Key Stage 2 pupils that is bright, airy and very pleasant for them.

“We are delighted that the design, colours and style reflect the very special environment where our school is situated.”

Stuart Norgett, architect and partner at Ingleton Wood’s office in the City of London, said: “The school really engaged everyone well in the whole design and build process. This meant they were able to give us firm ideas about what they wanted.

“The trees and woodland ideas came from them. This great piece of collaboration was probably one of the best parts of the building process for us.

“One of the biggest challenges we faced was the fact we were working on such a small site through the school terms, but a package of preparation works around the site allowed the school to continue operating seamlessly.”

London Borough of Bexley’s Cabinet Member for Education, Cllr John Fuller, said; “This is great news for Bursted Wood School. This impressive new extension will be home to an increased number of Bexley children. This is another example of how, together with schools, we have planned to ensure that we can continue to offer local children access to local schools.”