New food technology building planned for LRGS
Tuesday 9th February 2010
Lancaster Royal Grammar School has received planning permission from Lancaster City Council to go ahead with constructing a new food technology building on the site.
The plans were formally agreed at Planning Committee this week for a £1.4m building to be constructed on the school site, below the dining hall. The development will provide facilities for teaching food technology, which will become a compulsory school subject for all 11 to 13 year olds from 2011. Most of the cost of the building (nearly £1m) is being met by a grant from the Department for Children, Schools and Families. The school has also launched a fundraising campaign and is exploring other sources of funding to bridge the gap.
Building is due to start in March 2010, and follows detailed public consultation on the designs. Some details of the design, by Arup Associates, are still being finalised, to ensure that they meet fully with planning officers’ approval. As well as providing a space to teach food technology, the new building will also include a ‘grab and go’ dining facility for the boys, to increase the capacity of the current dining hall. The building will also house new staff and pupil common room area.
LRGS Business Director Fred Nelson said: “We welcome the opportunity to be able to offer food technology at LRGS in this new building, and this goes far beyond offering cookery lessons. Food technology is a key part of learning about the importance of healthy eating and will enhance the healthy food drive that is currently taking place at the school”.
The new building is the first phase of the school’s ambitious masterplan. Headmaster Andrew Jarman said: “This is a splendid, potentially iconic design, which will set the scene for the way we hope to develop the lower quadrant of the site. This is just the beginning of a much larger project, to renew facilities and to provide an attractive and stimulating educational environment for the boys.”
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