Industry consultancy Faithful+Gould has been selected to lead a combined schools and leisure complex project in Ponteland, Northumberland.

The scheme is part of a £57 million investment by Northumberland County Council into education and leisure. Faithful+Gould will act as technical adviser to the council, with additional roles of Employer’s Agent and Quantity Surveyor as well as overseeing health and safety on the project.

Willmott Dixon has been announced as preferred bidder for the project, with construction work scheduled to start in late summer. The current building will be demolished and replaced with a new facility, along with integrated primary and secondary schools on the centre’s current site, combining three buildings into complex.

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Features include a swimming pool with an aqua play area, a 500 piece state of the art gymnasium, spinning studio and two 3G artificial pitches for football and rugby. Further space will be created to provide a lecture theatre for the schools during the day, with further potential to become a community cinema in the evening.

Overall, the council is undertaking a reorganisation of eight of the schools in the Ponteland area, looking to move from a three tier to a two tier system and the new combined school and leisure centre development will form a major part of the initiative.

Steven Mason, Chief Executive of the council, said: "The investment into the schools and leisure facilities will provide a fresh and modern learning space for pupils, providing an excellent learning environment and helping to deliver the best possible education for children across Northumberland."

The new Ponteland school and leisure complex will be completed in 2019.

(LM/MH)