Schools fit for the future

Newham Learning Partnership (NLP) has been selected by Newham Council to deliver a £200 million Building Schools for the Future programme.

The consortium, led by Laing O'Rourke Portfolio Projects, was chosen after a stringent selection process undertaken over the past 20 months in line with European Union procurement rules.

The programme will involve rebuilding four schools, remodelling and refurbishing nine schools and equipping all secondary schools with state of the art ICT equipment installed and supported by ICT partner RM.

NLP will form a Local Education Partnership with Newham Council and Partnerships for Schools (PfS) that will build or refurbish the schools and maintain the new build PFI schools to a high standard over a 25 year period.

Work will begin immediately with the clearing of the site of the former Cumberland School in Canning Town, which will become the location of the new Rokeby School. Work will also commence at Lister, Brampton Manor and Sarah Bonnell schools in the next four months.

Councillor Quintin Peppiatt, Newham Council's Cabinet member for Children and Young People, said: "I am delighted that we have chosen a first class partner in Laing O'Rouke to work with us to deliver new secondary school facilities across the borough. We are excited that within a year we will start to see new school buildings that will allow our secondary schools to deliver a transformed curriculum for the young people of Newham."

Laing O'Rourke's Chief Operating Officer, Tony Douglas, said: "This contract award is marvelous news for the Laing O'Rourke Group as a whole and is a fitting tribute to the efforts put in by an exceptional team who have demonstrated their ability to listen with great care to the client's needs, while referencing our track record in delivering similar complex projects elsewhere in the UK. Together with our consortium partners, RM, we are absolutely delighted to be supporting Newham in delivering schools for the future a strategy bringing immeasurable long-term benefit to the borough and the wider community."

CEO of RM, Tim Pearson, said: "Newham has a bold vision for education and we're delighted to be part of it. We have a long and successful track record providing innovative ICT for learners and teachers in the borough, most recently through the Achieving Through Innovation programme which has contributed to a real improvement in standards in primary schools. We're looking forward to working with education managers in the borough and with Laing O'Rourke, our consortium partners, to help implement Newham's Strategy for Change."

Chief Executive of PfS, Tim Byles, said: "We congratulate Newham on reaching this important milestone on their journey to transform education for school children and communities in the area. The new and improved buildings, facilities and technology will have an enormous impact on the life chances of every child in Newham for decades to come, and I look forward to charting the progress of this exciting scheme."

Ends

Note to editors:
1. Little Ilford, Lister, Rokeby and Stratford schools will be rebuilt under Newham's BSF programme, Rokeby and Stratford schools on new sites. Brampton Manor, Eastlea, Forest Gate, Langdon, Plashet, Royal Docks, St Angela's, St Bonaventure's and Sarah Bonnell schools will be remodelled and refurbished.

2. Laing O'Rourke is the UK's largest privately-owned construction company. Major developments in which the Group has played a leading role include Heathrow Terminal 5; the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (St Pancras); the Manchester Schools' Framework Project and a number of iconic international developments in particular in the Middle East, India and Australia.

3. Founded in 1973, the RM Group is a leading provider of educational products and services to schools, colleges and universities, local government and central government education departments and agencies. RM works closely with educationalists to create new products, processes and technology which improve teaching and learning. RM is a leading supplier to the BSF programme and has been selected as ICT provider for ten projects.

4. BSF is the largest single schools capital investment programme for more than 50 years. The aim is to rebuild or renew every one of England's 3,500 state secondary schools during the 15-year lifetime of the programme. Partnerships for Schools (PfS) is the delivery agency for BSF. For more information visit www.p4s.org.uk

5. PfS was established in April 2004 as a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), and is operated and funded under a joint venture between the Department for Children, Schools and Families and Partnerships UK.