Work on £6m Kendal Queen Katherine School expansion begins

Four new classrooms, a sports hall and changing rooms are to be built on the Sandgate satellite site

Work has started to expand a school for children with special educational needs and disabilities.

Sandgate School's satellite campus at The Queen Katherine School in Kendal is to grow so all secondary age pupils can learn on the same site.

The expansion, which includes four new classrooms, a sports hall and changing rooms, is due to open in autumn 2024.

Sandgate headteacher Daniel Hinton said the new facilities would "cope with the demands of a modern curriculum".

Westmorland and Furness Council, which has funded the project, said the changes would increase the overall capacity of Sandgate School.

Having all secondary age pupils able to attend the campus at The Queen Katherine School would "make a huge difference" for students and would help educate more local children closer to home, the authority added.

Mr Hinton said he was "so pleased" work was now under way.

"We are a growing school, with increasing need across Westmorland and our catchment," he said.

"These brand new facilities will give our students a school fit for purpose and able to cope with the demands of a modern curriculum."

Jon Hayes, headteacher at The Queen Katherine School, said the expansion would "build upon the many years of successful collaboration".