29 October 2009
Capita Symonds has
been appointed as Technical Advisor for the £450m Blackburn
with Darwen and Bolton Building Schools for the Future (BSF)
programme, which has named the Balfour Beatty Education consortium
as Preferred Bidder this month.
The programme will build or remodel nine
schools across Blackburn with Darwen in a single phase, and 15
schools in Bolton through three phases.
Balfour Beatty Education will form a Local
Education Partnership with Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen
Councils to deliver BSF across both boroughs. ICT firm Northgate
will form part of the consortium to provide technology for the
schools in the programme.
Work is due to start in at Pleckgate
Mathematics and Computing College (above) in January 2010 and
at Darwen Vale High School (below) in September 2010. The schools
will be rebuilt or extensively remodelled to provide
state-of-the-art teaching and learning facilities and will be open
for community use.
Councillor Chris Thayne, executive member for
Blackburn with Darwen Council’s children’s services, congratulated
Balfour Beatty Education and said: "It’s very exciting to see the
programme progressing well and I am especially glad that the first
two schools to start work were involved in shaping the designs.
“BSF will affect virtually everyone in
Blackburn and Darwen and will shape the future of the area, its
communities and its learners. It is a massive investment in
schools, but it is about more than buildings because it is also the
chance to transform learning for generations of pupils through an
innovative and personalised curriculum.”
Councillor Ebrahim Adia, executive member for
children’s services at Bolton Council, said: “The bidders for this
contract faced a vigorous selection process and the Council and its
stakeholders had to be sure they selected the right company for the
job. Today is another step on the way to the regeneration of
Bolton’s schools and communities that BSF will bring and it is
tremendously exciting for all involved. The designs for the two
sample schools look excellent, and I am sure that Bolton’s schools
will look just as good as they do.”
Reaching this milestone is excellent news for the young people, teachers and local communities across Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton
Chris Sargent, Blackburn with Darwen and
Bolton bid director for Balfour Beatty Education, said: “Balfour
Beatty Education is extremely excited to be part of this
opportunity to transform the lives of young learners, the local
community and the local economies in Blackburn with Darwen and
Bolton. The new schools in Pleckgate and Darwen Vale, and the
future schemes will deliver inspirational learning environments for
the pupils, teachers and the local communities across the two
councils.”
Mark Howden, head of regeneration for the
Balfour Beatty Education bidding team, said: “We believe this is a
once in a lifetime opportunity, working in partnership with
Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton, to create sustained growth for
local businesses and to deliver a long terms skills legacy,
ensuring that the local economies are better able to compete in the
future.”
Tim Byles, chief executive of Partnerships for
Schools, the government agency responsible for managing the
national BSF programme, said: “Reaching this milestone is excellent
news for the young people, teachers and local communities across
Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton as it brings transformed schools
and state-of-the-art technologies a step closer. At its heart, BSF
is about improving the life chances for all young people, whatever
their background, whatever their needs. I look forward to seeing
Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton’s BSF projects take shape.”