New £8m 'net-zero' primary school given go-ahead

The school will have 210 pupils enrolled, including 20 SEN places and 20 nursery places

A new "carbon net-zero" £8m primary school has been give the go-ahead.

Wiltshire Council approved the proposal - which includes a nursery and special educational needs (SEN) provision - for the Bowerhill area of Melksham.

The school will have 210 pupils enrolled, including 20 SEN places and 20 nursery places.

Cabinet member for highways and flooding Nick Holder said: “This will be the first school that Wiltshire Council will build that meets all of our climate ambitions. It will be a fantastic template for all future schools that we build."

The plans were unanimously approved by councillors on 4 September after being first submitted in 2016, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

According to a council report, the building will be electrified and will avoid using the gas grid. It will also have high levels of insulation, solar panels and air source heat pumps.

It has been designed to meet operational net-zero targets during the course of a year, the report states.

The scheme contributes to the council’s commitment to being carbon neutral by 2030.

Mr Holder raised concerns about traffic surrounding the school and suggested that a no-right-turn be enforced at the exit of the facility, to which the committee agreed.

The school could become a "template" for future buildings across the county

A neighbour to the development objected to the scheme due to the location changing, and expressed fears the new school would overlook her hot tub

"Having children overlook our garden whilst we are swanning round in the ‘privacy’ of our own land is far from wrong and a two-storey building obstruct the nice view completely goes against what I agreed to when buying this property," she said.

In the meeting, the case officer said the location of the school moved due to a flooding risk, adding there will be obscure-glazed windows near her home.

What does 'net zero' mean?

Net zero means no longer adding to the total amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane. CO2 is released when oil, gas and coal are burned in homes, factories and to power transport. Methane is produced through farming and landfill.

These gases increase global temperatures by trapping extra energy in the Earth's atmosphere.