Wates wins £21m school contracts

Wates has been named as main contractor on three new-build schools for the Education & Skills Funding Agency in Sefton, Northwich, and Upton Heath, worth a combined £20.9m.

The largest of these, a £10.1m project at Maghull High School, is due to start on site in January next year. Wates will build the new facility alongside the High School’s existing building, and the development includes a new school hall, dining room, a performing arts suite, classrooms and staff space over two floors.

The project is set to complete in spring 2019, and the school’s existing building will be demolished once the new-build facility is handed over. It has been designed by architect Sheppard Robson.

Plans were submitted for the scheme in August this year but are yet to be approved by Sefton Council.

Wates has also secured contracts to build two further schools – a £7m project at Hartford High School in Northwich, and a £3.8m scheme for Upton Heath Primary School.

Both projects will start on site in June next year, and have also been designed by Sheppard Robson.

All three contracts have been awarded as part of the ESFA’s Priority Schools Building Programme 2. Building works for the programme are procured via the ESFA’s national and regional frameworks.

Tony Shenton, business unit director for Wates Construction North West, said: “This appointment reflects our experience in the delivery of exceptional learning environments for the ESFA and our reputation as a trusted contractor in the education sector.

“We are privileged to be continuing our role in the enhancement of the North West’s education infrastructure and the critical part it plays in the development of the region’s young people.”