Top Marks for Local School in National Competition (Milton Keynes Liberal Democrats)

Milton Keynes Liberal Democrats <info@mk-libdems.co.uk>

Top Marks for Local School in National Competition

July 1, 2009 3:51 PM

It's official! Water Hall Primary School in Bletchley is one of the most inspiring school buildings in Britain. The school beat off tough competition from 15 other schools from across the country in the "inspiring design" category of the British Council for School Environment (BCSE) annual gongs, which recognise national and international best practice in the design and construction of schools.

The judges thought this was an outstanding example of a new primary school which met the needs of its community and delivered a beautiful, sustainable building.

The award was accepted at an awards evening in London last month by Tony Draper, Water Hall School's Head Teacher and Mark Dolling, Strategic Manager in the Council's Capital Development Team.

Tony said: "Our whole school is thrilled to have won. The pupils absolutely love their new environment. The building has engendered a sense of pride and ownership I never thought possible and we're already seeing an improvement in self-esteem and behaviour. We didn't need an award to tell us how good it is, but this is the icing on the cake."

Water Hall is the first existing school in Milton Keynes to be completely rebuilt. The £6.7million project, funded and delivered by Milton Keynes Council, saw the creation of a brand new school building that includes modern classrooms, a sensory room, a dedicated nursery and foundation class area and spaces for the community to use for a range of activities. Each class also has its own private patio space for outside learning which the children helped to landscape. The school is home to the first outdoor kaleidoscope area in the region and is thought to be the only one of its kind in the country.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Sandra Clark, Lead Member for Children at Milton Keynes Council said: "This is fantastic news! It's the ultimate recognition of the hard work put into consultation, partnership working, architecture, landscaping and artwork that has made this project a huge success. It is one of a number of successful school building projects that have been delivered by the council in recent months, and there are some exceptional schemes starting and completing this summer. This demonstrates that we are firmly back on track with our programme, which is creating world-class teaching and learning environments."