New buildings and sports facilities should be complete by 2006

Ealing Council has announced the appointment of its preferred partner for its second round of school Private Finance Initiatives (PFIs).

Seafort consortium has been chosen as the council’s preferred partner to design, build and operate three new schools by 2006. The contract for the work will be awarded later in the process, following further negotiations.

Acton High School, along with Greenford High School and Featherstone and Glebe Nursery School, will benefit from £113.4 million of investment during the 25 year contract, of which £47.7m will be construction costs.

As well as brand new state of the art school buildings and landscaped grounds, Acton High School can look forward to new and improved community use sports facilities, which will be managed by the council's Active Ealing team.

Over the next four months detailed negotiations will take place to finalise the designs for the schools, the facilities management arrangements and the contract with the council. It is anticipated that the contract should be agreed early in 2005 with work starting on site by early spring.

The new Featherstone Primary and Glebe Nursery School is scheduled to open in the summer term 2006 followed by Acton and Greenford High Schools in autumn 2006.

Councillor Sonika Nirwal, Cabinet Member for Developing Young People said:

"The appointment of Seafort as our preferred bidder to design, build and operate new schools for our second schools PFI scheme is a great step towards providing Ealing's children with the best possible learning environment and facilities.

"We are already beginning to see the benefits of our first school PFI scheme with pupils from four Ealing schools starting the new school year in state of the art new buildings, and I'm really pleased that we can now start to roll out these benefits to other schools in the borough."

October 1st, 2004