Selby High School begins the construction of its state of the art computer resource centre

The construction of Selby High School’s state of the art ICT Resource Centre started today. The ‘breaking ground ceremony’ was attended by (pictured from the left) Jon Cook, Jacobs (UK) Limited, Malcolm Hemingway, ICT Manager, Paul Eckersley, Headteacher, Helen Billington, Vice Chair of governors, Stuart Lewis, Deputy Headteacher, Kerry Longley, Commercial Director and Andrew Pollintine from Simpson (York) Limited, the construction company.

The suite will be built in three phases to allow the school to continue to operate with minimum disruption.The main building phase will take place during the summer months and the completion date is set for the end of the autumn term.

The project is jointly funded by the NYCC and to a lesser degree, the school. Sustainable features of the build will be partially financed by the Npower ‘Climate Cops’ £20,000 prize money which students won way back in 2009 which the school earmarked for this project when talks were in the very early stages. Kerry Longley, Commercial Director said “It is wonderful to now see this money being used as intended; promoting sustainable energy initiatives to our young people. The money will help fund construction materials, lighting and insulation offering lower energy running costs, reduced carbon emissions and ultimately a much greener footprint”.

The £560,000 development will provide the latest in ICT equipment to all the students in the school. The Headteacher at the school, Paul Eckersley said, “The new centre will be named “The Hemingway Suite” in recognition of the school’s long serving ICT Manager, who has contributed so much to the school becoming a respected centre of excellence for ICT, both locally and nationally.”

The suite offers a fantastic permanent solution to capacity issues arising from the removal of three temporary classroom units in 2007 when planning permission was revoked. Being built above the existing ICT classrooms, the suite will contain over 100 computers in a large open plan office environment and be completely self-contained. It will have Wi-Fi access and a fantastic remote controlled audio visual system, to deliver sound and vision across six large LCD/LED screens to support students with their learning. Everyone at the school is thrilled to see this fantastic new development begin after so many years of deliberations and in the midst of such difficult economic times. The design and planning process has been really exciting for all those involved. Stuart Lewis, Deputy Headteacher, was quoted saying “It’s a rare and fantastic opportunity for a teacher to be involved in developing a building from scratch which could have such a fundamental part to play in the education of young people for many years to come. I am confident we have developed a motivational and stimulating space for everyone to work and learn and which will support the ever changing face of education and it’s curriculum for years to come. I’m very much looking forward to the day the Centre opens”.