A NEW school building in Barry is now in its second phase of development.
The second phase, carried out by Bouygues UK, has started at Pencoedtre High School, focused on introducing outdoor sporting facilities for pupils and the wider community to use.
This includes building a floodlit all-weather hockey pitch, as well as grass rugby and football pitches.
The contractor handed over the main buildings of the £34.7 million school to the Vale of Glamorgan Council, staff, and pupils of the school in December.
Work is now being carried out to add outside sports facilities to Pencoedtre High School.
The build is part of the Vale of Glamorgan Council and Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning investment programme, which has also delivered a new building for Whitmore High School and an expansion for Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg.
As phase two of the project was launched, Lis Burnett, Vale of Glamorgan Council deputy leader and cabinet member for education and regeneration, said: “I don’t think you can overstate the importance of the sports facilities at a school like this, not just for the children but also for the community around it.
“I don’t think it’s a complete school until we have these amazing outdoor facilities finished.
"They are going to allow the children extracurricular activities to participate in, alongside opportunities for the local community in this area of Barry to use them too.”
She added that is it “phenomenal” that the build went ahead in the Covid pandemic, and that the young people of the school are “worth every penny” spent on the project.
Bouygues UK operations director for Wales, Stephen Davies, said: “The team here have worked tirelessly, through challenging and difficult circumstances to deliver this wonderful school on time and to the highest standards.
“What is particularly gratifying to see is how well the school works for the pupils and staff. the feedback has also been great.
“To see them all enjoying the building and its new facilities both inside and outside their classes is wonderful to see.”
He added that he is “looking forward to seeing the progress” as the outdoor sport facilities are built.
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