Costs have ramped up on a major project to build a new school in Hampshire.
Contractor Kier was appointed on a pre-construction services contract (PBSA) to build North Whiteley Secondary School in Winchester for £46.7m in March, but the project cost has increased to £52m after the tender return was “in excess” of the funding put aside for the project, according to council documents.
The new three-storey school will include teaching spaces alongside an assembly hall, dining hall and library. It is due to be completed in summer 2027.
Kier will also construct a two-storey sports block at the site, alongside two all-weather sports pitches, grass playing fields and a staff and visitor car park.
But Hampshire County Council now faces an increase in funding after its director for children’s services last week requested the increase in funding.
“The tender return for the project is in excess of this agreed funding and while action is being taken to reduce the funding gap, additional funding will be required,” Stuart Ashley said to the council.
Increasing the funding to £52m would “allow sufficient funding to be in place while work continues to reduce the total amount required to deliver the project”, he added.
The new school will serve 900 students from ages 11 to 16 with the potential to expand to 1,200 places.
The new site will include photovoltaic panels and be a “super-insulated and airtight building”, according to Hampshire County Council documents.
Planning permission was obtained from the council in April, with plans for construction work to start this summer during the school holidays.
Work will be completed by the end of August next year, according to data intelligence firm Glenigan.
Whiteley was proposed as a new town in the 1970s, with plans to build 4,000 homes by the 1980s. But the number was reduced to 2,600 and the council is now building an extra 3,500 homes at the site, with facilities including the new school.
The school will be run by the Henry Cort Community College, which is set to move to the new building from its current site in Fareham.
A spokersperson for Kier said: “Kier has been appointed to a preconstruction services contract by Hampshire County Council to support the delivery of the new North Whiteley Secondary School.
“As part of this ongoing preconstruction work, we are currently working with the council to finalise the project value.”
A spokesperson for Hampshire County Council said: “Budgeting for large projects can be challenging at the outset, particularly on an undeveloped site, when the national economic outlook is uncertain and construction costs are influenced by many variables.
“The revised sum within the capital programme makes provision for unforeseen issues as contingency but does not indicate the anticipated final cost,” they added.
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Joshua Stein