20 September 2012
Waveney MP Peter Aldous yesterday formally opened Pakefield High School in Lowestoft.

Pakefield High School opened the doors of its brand new building to pupils on Monday 10th September 2012. Year 7 pupils had a preview of the new building when they attended a week’s induction last July in the new science suite, but all our pupils and staff were welcomed in for the first time this term. A whole school assembly was held in the new hall to start the new academic year officially and to mark this historic occasion.

It is the first secondary school to have been opened in Suffolk for over 25 years with Phase 1 having been built by Suffolk County Council at a cost of £12 million. This large investment in education for the children of South Lowestoft is designed to provide the facilities and resources needed to deliver excellent teaching and learning and it is Pakefield’s over-arching aim to be outstanding from the start.

The new building houses all the specialist accommodation for the school. It includes: a suite of 6 science laboratories and classrooms, 6 technology rooms for resistant materials, food, textiles and graphics, an enormous art suite that can be subdivided into 3 separate classrooms or opened out into a warehouse-size art centre of over 300 square metres, a media centre, a music suite with two classrooms and 6 practice rooms, a dance and performance hall, a full size main hall, a learning resource centre and three large breakout spaces for individual or small group learning. The two wings of the building meet in a central, internal street that is covered with a roof made of the same material that covers the Eden Project in Cornwall. The Street will be used also for teaching and learning and as an informal gathering place for pupils.

Mr Aldous was joined by Michael Foreman, the internationally famous author and illustrator, who grew up in Pakefield and attended Pakefield Primary school on the same site. Pupils and staff have long prepared for the occasion and have organised some exciting events to make this occasion truly memorable.

Speaking at the event today Peter Aldous MP for Waveney said:
“It was a great pleasure to be involved in the official opening of Pakefield High School. The school is a great asset to the local community and I congratulate all those who have contributed to its establishment.”