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25
Sept
North Yorkshire Council has awarded a contract worth £2,013,251 to adapt the former Woodfield Community Primary School in Harrogate into a special school for autistic children.
The council revealed today it had given the contract to Wetherby-based The Together Group Construction Ltd.
According to the company’s website, its previous schemes include redeveloping the Piece Hall in Halifax and constructing the soft play centre and nursery for Monkey Maze in Garforth.
Woodfield school, in the Bilton area of Harrogate, formally closed at the end of 2022 despite a campaign to save it.
The site, which includes a large outdoor area, has been vacant since.
Last year the council announced plans to convert it into a school for children aged 11 to 19 with autism at a cost of £3.5 million. It was initially due to open this month, but the date was later put back to 2025.
A decision notice on the council website said:
A competitive procurement exercise was undertaken between February and July 2024. The scheme is programmed to commence on site in October 2024 and complete in May 2025.
The Stray Ferret has asked the council for further details of the project, including whether the new school building will operate on the same footprint as the old one, as well as who will run the school.
The old school had capacity for 155 children; the new site will cater for 80.
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