Go-ahead for plan to extend Ross school

A Herefordshire school is to benefit from £663,000 of improvements, with money from recent housing developments nearby.

Planning permission to remodel and extend parts of Ashfield Park Primary School in Ross-on-Wye was granted a year and a half ago, but funding for the work has only now been confirmed.

It will get a new reception office along with other offices and a meeting room, while the vacated office space and reception area within the building will be adapted into a hygiene and physiotherapy facility for children with additional needs.

The single-storey extension will enable visitors and parents to access the school without having to cross the playground while children are playing, so “addressing current safeguarding concerns”, according to the council’s decision notice, which gives the school’s address as in Hereford.

The money comes from two historic housing developments, the 290-home scheme by Markey Builders on land east of the A40, which was finally signed off in 2020, and also the more recently completed Hildersley Farm development of over 200 houses off the A40 further south.

Under so-called section 106 agreements, developers of larger schemes must commit to funding local infrastructure as a condition of gaining planning approval.

Seven bids were received in response to the council’s tender for the primary school work, of which six were compliant.

From these, the bid by S C Joseph Ltd of Hereford was selected, though it was the second highest of the six, the council explaining that its choice was based on “evaluation of both price and quality submissions”.

The tender said the work would be carried out between March and August this year.

Meanwhile the council has also approved spending of £165,414 from its own funds to repair the roof at Much Birch C of E Primary School, between Ross and Hereford.

According to the council’s tender for the work, it comprises replacing roof lights, windows and external render, installing a new drain and replacing an asbestos-coated ceiling with a new suspended ceiling with LED lighting.

The work was awarded to SWG Construction (Build & Renovate) Ltd of Welshpool, Powys.