£3m extension approved for Antrim school

The two-storey extension, located at Steeple Road, Antrim, will provide additional school accommodation, parking and landscaping.

Comprising 1,395sqm, the new development will have provision for additional classroom space, a recording studio, library, a vice principal’s office, sixth form annex, toilet facilities and stores.

Parkhall Integrated College, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, is part of a shared campus with Antrim Grammar School, having moved to its new state-of-the-art accommodation in 2018. When the school first opened its doors, it had an initial enrolment of some 320 pupils. Today, the school caters for over 1,000 pupils.

Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Ald Stephen Ross said: “It is fitting that, in its landmark 50th year, Parkhall Integrated College is taking the next step towards making the school fit for future generations of pupils.

“The school has changed and evolved immensely over the decades and is now a thriving all-inclusive, non-selective fully integrated post-primary school - the only one in the town of Antrim - educating children from right across the borough from the age of 11 to 18.”

Chair of the Planning Committee, Ald Fraser Agnew added: “This fantastic extension will serve to further enhance the modern new school building that was completed in 2018, and help ensure that Parkhall is fully equipped to prepare young people for the future.

“Parkhall Integrated College has always been a vital part of this community and I am sure it will remain so for many more years to come.”

The applicant - the Education Authority - stated that the extension was scheduled to begin in February 2023, providing 95 construction jobs and five post-construction jobs. The project is expected to take 13 months to complete.

The council’s Planning Committee signed off on the application, stating that there was no significant impact on the amenity to residential properties adjoining the school site and no significant impact on the character and appearance of the area.