Breaking ground for secondary education in Walthamstow

Work on Kelmscott Secondary School’s new inclusive education building started this week, helping to expand the popular school from 900 to 1,200 students as demand for school places in Waltham Forest grows.

Cllr Strathern, Waltham Forest’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Council representatives and members of Kelmscott School staff marked the second phase of works with a groundbreaking ceremony.

The second phase of the project will deliver a two-storey classroom block that will be ready for the September 2023 intake, providing top class facilities and more opportunities at the school for local children. There will be eight general classrooms, an Alternative Provision Unit, and staff offices.

Pictured above: A computer generated image of the new building at Kelmscott Secondary School.

Sustainability will be at the heart of the new building, linking into wider Council plans to make buildings greener to address the climate emergency, this includes a green roof with solar panels, a natural ventilation system (MVHR system), and air source heat pumps that will aim for BREEAM ‘very good’ Certification.

Kelmscott School was also presented with a SPACES (Society for Public Architecture, Construction, Engineering and Surveying) Award 2022 for first phase of the expansion in the ‘Small Project’ category, completed in January 2021. The refurbished area won the award for its exemplar design, in the provision of additional dining space for students, an activity studio and a high-quality space for Science and Design and Technology lessons.

Pictured from left to right: Sam Jones, Headteacher of Kelmscott, Cllr Alistair Strathern and Warren Kerr, Project Manager.

Councillor Alistair Strathern, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People said: “Waltham Forest is committed to ensuring our young residents can access high-quality educational facilities all within 15 minutes. Our Schools Capital Delivery Programme is creating and adapting inclusive, ground-breaking new facilities for students across the borough to ensure so no child is left behind with their education as the need for more school places grow. This is just one of the ways that we’re investing to practically support schools to address as many educational needs as possible. I can’t wait to see the finished product and students using the facilities soon.”

Sam Jones, Headteacher of Kelmscott School said: “This is an exciting new chapter for Kelmscott School as we expand. An integral part of the Kelmscott vision is a wish to ‘prepare students to operate confidently on a global stage’ how wonderful that we now have the facilities to match this aim. It is wonderful to see our students enjoying this, every day, at break and lunchtimes with beaming smiles on their faces They feel like grown-ups in this space, they feel valued. What the expansion has added to our school cannot be underestimated.”

The third phase of works will see internal remodelling to provide suited accommodation for students.