Avon Valley College, Durrington, has opened its new teaching block funded by the Ministry of Defence.
A small ceremony was led by Brigadier Paddy Ginn the Commander of 20 Armoured Infantry Brigade based in Bulford.
The college, as one of five schools in the Salisbury Plain Academy Trust, serves Larkhill, Durrington and Bulford, the villages at the heart of the largest British Army Garrison in the UK, on the edge of Salisbury Plain Training Area. Nearly 50% of the children attending the school are from Service families.
The area is the core of the recent re-basing programme. Many units were moved into the area as a consequence of the drawdown of UK Forces in Germany. Hundreds of houses accommodate the returning troops and their families. In 2016 increased school place capacity included the new St Michael’s Primary School, Larkhill, opened in 2018, and a new block of classrooms for Avon Valley College, funded by the Ministry of Defence.
The new classroom block has been built by Halsall Construction and will provide a magnificent facility aimed especially at sixth form use as the school continues to grow. The 15 new classrooms spread over three floors cover 2,000m2 and seven classrooms for general use with two for ICT, and a suite of classrooms for art, music and drama, plus staff work rooms.
Brig Ginn said: “The new classroom block recognises the strength and depth of the relationship between the military and local population. Nearly 200 children from Service families in more than 30 units attend Avon Valley College; the commitment to their education has been recognised by the Ministry of Defence which provided funding for the new build and other areas, as part of the rebasing programme, to help ensure Avon Valley College continues to provide the best education for all the children in the community”.
Head of School Mrs Louisa Paston said: “Avon Valley College is a thriving community school that delivers top quality teaching to all pupils and is especially proud of its strong links to the Army and the units based in the local area. The school is firmly on an upward trajectory in all areas and the addition of the superb new block will only serve to enhance the teaching and facilities that are available at the school and enable us to continue to meet the needs of the pupils in the years ahead”.
Executive Principal for Salisbury Plain Academies and former principal of Avon Valley College, Sam Johnston said: “The 18-classroom state-of-the-art three storey new block is a fantastic resource for Avon Valley College that will transform provision for expressive arts and ICT, and provide a new home for the expanding sixth form and maths department. The project has been a long time in coming but the careful planning of, and close communication between, all parties has meant that each specialised classroom provides far greater opportunities for creative projects and significantly enrich the curriculum.”