A primary school where pupils were forced to paddle through raw sewage after a botched multi-million pound refurbishment is to be rebuilt by the government.
The Department for Education has today announced that Russell Scott Primary School in Denton has been provisionally selected for the next round of the school rebuilding programme.
It follows tireless campaigning by headteacher Steve Marsland and Denton and Reddish MP Andrew Gwynne who for years have been calling on the government to intervene at the school, which they say has been left unfit for children.
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The Clare Street school, which dates back to the 19the century, has been plagued with problems caused by a remodelling project by construction giant Carillion, which collapsed in 2018.
The works, costing more than £2 million, took place from 2013 to 2015 with pupils being send to a disused secondary while building took place.
But shockingly on the first day back they had to be sent home within hours because experts found the building didn’t comply with fire regulations.
Over the next seven years the school has faced a mountain of problems caused by the refurb, including faulty fire doors, raw sewage leaks, flooding and illness from fumes – which has seen the primary forced to close a number of times.
Pupils have never been able to play on the school’s grass field since it reopened as it has been left filled with craters and rubble including dangerous glass and ceramic material.
Work to patch up problems has already set the school back more than £670,000.
Mr Marsland said Friday’s announcement that the school could be totally rebuilt was the ‘best Christmas present we could have dreamed of’.
“It’s been a long eight years coming but it’s the most fantastic news the community of Russell Scott Primary School could have wished for,” he added.
“I must thank the new Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan for eventually recognising the overwhelming difficulties that the school community has endured over all these years and prioritising the rebuilding of Russell Scott.
“The problems started on day one of the £2.4m remodelling in 2015 by Carillion that now requires a rebuild.
“Carillion and those who supported their position, and failed the school before they went into liquidation should be ashamed of themselves that a school’s cry for help under severe and extreme difficulties should go unheard and unheeded.
“A bright future awaits Russell Scott with opportunities for our children that we could only have dreamt about before this announcement and we aim to fulfil those dreams.”
He also thanked the work of Mr Gwynne for being ‘resolute and demanding’ in support of the school and its pupils.
The local MP said: “This has been a long, arduous and at times frustrating process. However, I’m utterly delighted that the Government has finally listened to the concerns of myself and the staff at Russell Scott and granted this funding.
“I’ll continue to work to ensure that the children at Russell Scott benefit from a safe and secure learning environment.”
In her letter outlining Russell Scott’s inclusion in the school rebuilding programme, Gillian Keegan MP, secretary of state for education stated that it had been chosen following a ‘rigorous selection process’.
“We plan to replace or refurbish one or more buildings at this school, as appropriate for the condition of the buildings on the site,” she stated. “This will greatly improve the learning environment at this school for years to come.”
Under the scheme, the government will either replace or totally restore the school, harnessing modem technology to make it carbon neutral. Following diligence checks, delivery on the works could begin by 2023.
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