A large parcel of land has exchanged hands to allow a “much-loved” primary school to expand and add hundreds of new places.
Rosherville Church of England Academy recently won approval for its bid to move to a new site at the Cable Wharf Development in Northfleet.
A £10million expansion and relocation has been on the cards for decades and will see the school, which currently has around 140 youngsters aged four to 11 on the books, add an additional 280 school places.
When the new site opens in September 2025 it will keep its name and welcome children from the new housing development – increasing its numbers by more than 70%.
Plans to ramp up the number of places the school has have been progressed in conjunction with Kent County Council (KCC).
And now housebuilder Keepmoat has transferred a 4.3 acre parcel of land from its Cable Wharf development to the local authority in order to facilitate the expansion.
This will also include 15 spaces for children with special educational needs pupils, a 26-place nursery and a science laboratory.
Following the handover of the land, the council will create soft and hard landscaping features, including a two court, multi-use games area, a 3G artificial grass football pitch, playing fields and a playground.
The new school building will take design inspiration from the area’s heritage which was formerly home to a flagship cable factory.
Plans have been revealed for the school to meet its net zero aspirations with Keepmoat contributing £75,000 towards upgrading the electricity capacity in the area, which will allow for the installation of electric water heating.
Additional eco-features include solar PV panels, a green roof to enhance biodiversity, energy efficient lighting, air source heat pump heating systems and hybrid ventilation.
Michael O’Farrell, regional managing director at Keepmoat, said: “We’re thrilled to be supporting the expansion of a much-loved community school to enable it to increase its intake of local children and achieve its net zero targets.
“This fantastic expansion will also benefit the wider community with the outdoor spaces available for residents and local sports groups to use once created.
“It’s an honour to work so closely with the local authority to deliver enhanced community benefits across Northfleet.”
Rosherville is one of 12 schools run by the Aletheia Academies Trust, with soon-to-be open Alkerden Church of England all-through school in Ebbsfleet also joining its ranks when it opens as a four-form entry in September 2025.
A consultation was carried out in November last year where the public were given the chance to give their views on the new facility before a now-approved planning application was submitted to Gravesham council.
The school, rated good by Ofsted in September 2022 for the first time since opening, is set to move to its new building in Spring 2026.
