Hammersmith & Fulham Council Leader, Cllr Stephen Cowan, officially opened a new primary school building with local pupils in White City last week.
Ark White City Primary Academy forms part of the exciting £150m EdCity development from H&F Council and education charity Ark, in a ground-breaking new approach to providing education locally.
The innovative partnership will also bring a new state-of-the art education hub and youth centre to White City, as well as 132 new affordable homes for local people, and 1,000 new jobs. All at no additional cost to the taxpayer.
H&F Leader, Cllr Stephen Cowan said: “It's a huge privilege to open this new school building as part of our ground-breaking EdCity development, which will help provide local residents with the right skills and qualifications needed for the jobs of the future we’re bringing to H&F, as we attract some of the world’s hottest firms to the borough with our pioneering Industrial Strategy.”
Our Industrial Strategy in partnership with Imperial College London has helped attract more than £5billion in local investment and created more than 8,000 local jobs in exciting new tech-driven industries including the emerging economic hotspot in White City – home to global big-hitters such as Novartis, L’Oréal and Publicis.
EdCity scheme
Executive Principal Daniel Upfield said: "There is a sense of joy that we have finally reached this stage. I joined Ark Swift in 2018, and there was talk about EdCity. I remember being in design meetings, thinking about how this new school would transform the community and the city's educational landscape. Sadly, COVID-19 stopped the project, but over the last few years, construction really got going, and we had a unique opportunity to merge two communities at Ark Burlington Danes and Ark Swift.
“The children have done a remarkable job in coming together, as have our staff, who have been fantastic and so unbelievably flexible. We are very excited about our school's future and opportunities, so I want to thank everyone who's worked tirelessly to make this project a reality."
The newest school in H&F has state-of-the-art IT and modern classrooms, and access to a range of sports and performing arts facilities.
Ark White City Primary has brought together Ark Swift and Ark Burlington Danes Primary Academies to create one, two-form entry school, in the heart of White City.
Alongside the new primary school, the EdCity development will create:
- 132 new homes - all of which are affordable for local people
- a new building for Harmony Nursery to increase capacity to 75 children
- a new OnSide Youth Zone providing sporting, creative and social activities and opportunities for local young people
- an expanded H&F Adult Learning and Skills Centre providing training and life-long learning opportunities for local residents
- a new 100,000sqft office space for up to 1,000 jobs and other organisations and businesses.
For more details, visit the EdCity website.
