Facelift for Tilehurst school

Denefield School is set for a £9m refurbishment after West Berkshire Council recently granted planning permission

A SCHOOL in Tilehurst is to get a £9 million facelift.

West Berkshire Council has granted planning permission to radically refurbish Denefield School, in Long Lane, which will see construction of a new science block, multi-use indoor atrium, sixth form space and upgrades facilities in other departments.

The state of the art science and technology block is a key element of the project.

It will be located at the side of the school, looking to the north of Long Lane, and present the campus with a much enhanced external appearance.

The headteacher Glyn Whiteford said it was a very exciting time for the school.

“The new buildings and other new facilities will enable our students to achieve even higher academic standards over the next few years and provide an additional resource to be used by the whole community, especially our partner primary schools,” he said.

Lorraine Doyle, the chairwoman of the school's governors, added: “This project demonstrates a strong commitment to investment in the education of current and future Denefield students.”

The money for the project has come largely from central government, with additional contributions from West Berkshire Council, and the school itself.

A formal ceremony to mark the start of the new build will be arranged once initial works have taken place over the next few weeks.

The news marks a positive step for the secondary school which has made rapid improvements since it was placed in special measures by Ofsted inspectors in 2009.

Last summer its students celebrated their best ever GCSE results, and in February this year it became one of only 40 schools nationally, and the first in West Berkshire, to achieve the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Mark in recognition of excellence in training staff, and in March it retained its Investors in People award.