York construction firm secures £1.8m contract to build Sheffield school extension

Evora Construction, the York-based construction company, has won a £1.8m contract to build a new teaching block at Handsworth Grange Community Sports College in Sheffield.

The company will build a 960m2 extension for the school and create 10 new classrooms.

Work on the new block began in late 2017 and is due to be completed by August 2018, in time for the new academic year.

Richard Elam, director at Evora Construction said, “Working in the education sector is always a fun challenge; school buildings have a crucial role to play in raising educational standards, and they need to fully suit the needs and challenges of the 21st Century.”

The school, which recently received an Outstanding Ofsted review, is a specialist sports college for children aged 11-16 in the South-East area of Sheffield.

Mr Elam added: “As a business, we try to engage with the schools when working in this sector, and use the building work as a catalyst for a learning project.

“We sometimes conduct classroom visits to discuss topics such as project management, health and safety, or even the history of the children’s town or city.

“It helps them understand why we’re on site in our bright yellow jackets, and what it actually is that we’re working on.”

Commenting on the current progress with the building work, Mr Elam said: “At Handsworth, we’ve already started on the groundwork; we’ve stripped the old tarmac, exposed the attenuation tanks for removal and put the steel frames up, so we are well on our way.”