Expansion work to double the capacity of a primary school near Newark continues to take shape.

The project at Chuter Ede Primary School’s Fernwood site is set to deliver an additional 210 primary school places and helps to address growing demand in the area.

These improvements come as part an overall £9.4m investment, made up of £5.4m from the county council’s school places programme, with housing developer contributions worth £4m.

Work includes eight new classrooms, a library and music room, an activity hall, a medical room, a football pitch and new outdoor equipment. The work is due to be completed ahead of new intake in September 2026.

Councillor James Walker-Gurley, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Asset Management, visited the school alongside Councillor Hana John, Cabinet Member for Education and SEND and Councillor Rory Green, Cabinet Member for Children and Families. Commenting on the progress being made at the site, Councillor Walker-Gurley said:

“We are proud of this project as there is no better investment than increasing the number of school places for our future generations.

“Improving facilities is essential as young people deserve to learn in well-equipped and modern buildings to help their education.”

Head Teacher Mrs Bernadette Hunter added:

“Our school plays a central role in the local community. The new classrooms and other key rooms will be welcomed with open arms by the staff and pupils alike. We very much look forward to keeping everyone informed about the building works over the coming months.”

This work is being designed, project and cost-managed by Arc Partnership, a joint venture between Nottinghamshire County Council and SCAPE, and delivered through its construction partner Morgan Sindall.

These improvements are also helping boost skills and experience in the workforce.  Morgan Sindall’s graduate site manager, Lewis Hartshone, 22, is already benefitting from this high-profile project. He said:

“It’s exciting to be part of delivering this phase of this project, which has been instrumental in advancing my capabilities as a graduate site manager.  I’ve been leading inspections from the initial site establishment through to complex groundworks operations, which has strengthened my technical expertise. It's great to be a part of the project and learn from all the professionals in this team.”

The project is also providing students at Nottingham Trent University with valuable opportunities to develop their skills in architecture, technology, project management, and quantity surveying. This has been made possible through the University’s partnerships with Arc Partnership and Morgan Sindall and has seen students participate in site visits to Chuter Ede Primary School and attend lectures focused on the project.

Chuter Ede Fernwood, which is an annex of Chuter Ede Primary School at Balderton, was built in 2012 to service the growing number of children from the new Fernwood estate and is being developed in three phases.

The first two phases have been completed and, in addition to the original school building in phase one, have seen the creation of a sports field, outdoor play area, car parking and landscaping.