DERBY'S most overcrowded secondary school is to have a new £2.1 million classroom block built as part of programme of repairs and improvements by the city council.

A citywide survey revealed that Littleover Community School had more pupils than space available according to its floor area measurement.

The Pastures Hill school has 1,507 pupils on its roll, requiring a floor area of 12,799 sq metres. But it has 10,350 sq metres, which is only room for 1,342 pupils – a shortfall of 165 spaces.

Although the extra classrooms will not fully address the shortfall, head teacher Ash Venkatesh is pleased the project will go ahead, with the possibility that another £2.3 million will be found for more work in next year's budget.

Mr Venkatesh said: "We are delighted that money has been found in these hard times that will enable us to have more space.

"The two-storey block will be built by September 2013 at the front of the school and will have six classrooms on the upper floor and four on the lower, which will house the sixth form. In turn, this will free up other areas of the school, allowing them to be refurbished and remodelled."

Littleover Community School was one of the secondary schools in the city earmarked for rebuild and refurbishment under the then Labour government's Building Schools for the Future project, which was axed by the present government.

Mr Venkatesh said: "When BSF was scrapped, we thought it would be difficult for money to be found for any work, so this is a bonus.

"The city council is allocating £1.6 million for what would be the first phase and we are contributing the rest from our own account."

A total of £7,398.503 has been allocated by the city council for individual building projects at 25 different schools and some of the cash will pay for design and survey work at other schools.

Out of the money, £1 million has been set aside to start building a £1.8 million extension at Homefields Primary School, in Chellaston, and £857,000 to create new buildings in a £3 million project at Arboretum Primary, in Normanton, to increase places.

Robin Mitchell, business manager at Arboretum Primary, said: "We are pleased that the school will expand from 315 places to 525 with this development in an area where there is increasing pressure on spaces."

Andrew Bunyan, city council strategic director for children and young people said: "We are working with the school so this major project will be developed as quickly as possible."

MONEY FOR IMPROVEMENTS

Other allocations from Derby City Council's capital building programme include:

Brookfield Primary, £180,000, for a nursery unit; Carlyle Infant £121,000, replacement floors; Alvaston Infant, £20,000, fire risk assessment work; Cavendish Close Junior, £300,000, rewiring and fire risk assessment work; Chaddesden Park Infant, £106,000, various remedial work; Chaddesden Park Junior, £25,000, demolition of chimney; Chellaston Infant, £92,000, fire risk assessment work; Cherry Tree Hill Primary, £93,000, fire risk assessment work; Derwent Community Primary, £40,000, replacement boilers; Gayton Junior, £261,491, replacement roofing; Rosehill Infant, £78,000, replacement pipework; Wren Park Primary, £30,000, fire risk assessment work; Central Nursery, £30,000, replacement boilers; Murray Park School, £300,000, fire risk assessment works; St Giles' School, £73,000, replacement pipework; St Martin's School, £632,000, various work; Bishop Lonsdale C of E Primary, £36,000, office space; St James' C of E Junior, £23,400, access improvement; St Peter's C of E Junior, £6,188, remodelling; Walter Evans C of E Primary, £175,000, remodelling classrooms and St Joseph's Catholic Primary, £135,000, remodelling classrooms.

A further £60,000 has been allocated to various schools for design work and £210,000 towards improving school kitchens.