Spade work by Bishop sees start of church school

The Bishop of Bradford, the Right Reverend David Smith, cuts a sod out of the ground the new Immanuel Church of England Community College is being built in Thackley.

The Bishop carried out the ceremony with Mike Smith, marketing director of Allenbuild Projects, which has won an £8.6 million contract to build the school.

The firm says the first phase of the school should be finished by September - in time for the first intake of pupils to start the new school year. The building will be completed by December.

Mike Smith said: "We are delighted to commence work on this exciting project which will provide a vital resource for the local area. Bradford's network of education resources is undergoing something of a renaissance at the moment of which this school will form a significant part."

The firm is building eleven independent blocks linked by corridors and includes car and cycle parking and will involve road improvements in the area.

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