Member Article

Conlon scores with Sir Tom Finney scheme

Conlon Construction has been awarded a £5m project to refurbish and extend the former Ashton Community Science College on Ribbleton Hall Drive as a new campus for Sir Tom Finney Community School in Preston.

Working for Lancashire County Council to deliver the project, the Preston-based contractor will be responsible for a major refurbishment of the existing school building along with a single-storey extension.

The project is part of an asset optimisation programme by Lancashire County Council, which saw some of the staff and pupils from Leyland St Mary’s Catholic High School using the facilities at the vacant Ribbleton Hall Drive building temporarily following the fire damage at Leyland St Mary’s last year.

the former Ashton Ribbleton School can now be completely refurbished to offer specialist provision for the broad spectrum of learning difficulties and disabilities catered for by Sir Tom Finney Community School.

Designed to accommodate 140 pupils with special educational needs (SEN), Sir Tom Finney School was officially opened by the late football legend at its Moor Park site in 2008.

The move to the Ribbleton Hall Drive site will ensure that the school has specialist facilities to accommodate its current and future needs. This also includes a new hydrotherapy pool, including ancillary accessible changing, toilet and shower facilities, hard and soft landscaping to the campus, including wheelchair ramps and a sensory garden.

Michael Conlon, Chairman at Conlon Construction, said: “We will be delivering this scheme to a tight programme completing in March 2015 to ensure that pupils from Sir Tom Finney School can benefit from the new facilities as soon as possible.

“SEN environments require close attention to detail to ensure that they fulfil the school’s aim of meeting the diverse needs of a wide variety of learners in a safe environment with flexible space that can be adapted to meet individual needs.

“At Conlon, we have the experience to answer those requirements by remodelling an existing building and enhancing it with new-build accommodation.”

County Councillor Matthew Tomlinson, cabinet member for children, young people and schools, said: “The timings on this scheme are critical as we needed a contractor to be able to start work as soon as the Ribbleton site was available.

“We’ve worked with Conlon before and we’re pleased to be working with them on as a partner contractor this important project. I look forward to seeing the result when it is finished and I am sure the pupils will love their new-look school with its specialist facilities.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .