There was stunned silence as children saw for the first time an animated image of their new £7m school.
Pupils at North Denes Primary School in Great Yarmouth gathered in the hall to view the film which saw a camera swoop over the virtual vision.
Taking the perspective of a soaring drone the flyover footage travelled along the Jellicoe Road approach to the school revealing new marked-out pitches and the position of the buildings on the sizeable footprint.
Youngsters then had the chance to quiz Norfolk County Council’s capital programme manager Isabel Horner about the changes.
She explained the timescale of the project, why they were doing it and if there would be any effect on wildlife in the area.
With so many hands up Mrs Horner and headteacher Debbie Whiting decided to take questions in order, saying they were impressed by the level of inquiry shown by the young audience made up of school council members and “golden tie” students.
Questions ranged from the number of classrooms (14), to whether there would be a youth club and rooms for after school clubs (it’s up to the teachers) and what would happen to the wildlife (it would all be fine and probably have more new habitat to explore).
Other concerns covered the length of the build (12 months), how they would get around the site (safely with lots of protection around) and if it would be noisy (sometimes, but they aimed to do the loudest work out of school hours or in the holidays).
One child asked if it would mean any days off (no).
Building work on the new school will start this time next year and should be ready by September 2020, or possibly sooner.
A planning application for the temporary buildings will go in soon.
Demolition of the 1930’s built school will only happen when the new school is finished.
Mrs Horner said it was the biggest school project for the town in some years although many other schools had benefited from new building and extensions following re-organisation in 2015.
The project involves the controversial closure of Alderman Swindell Primary School.
Parents there have protested angrily saying their children are happy and enjoy the ethos of the smaller school community.
The school is staging a celebration day and school fayre on June 23 and is appealing for memorabilia to display.
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