Pupils will finally move into a brand new school after the summer holidays amid fears it would not be ready in time, it has been confirmed.
Senior staff at the new Chilmington Green Secondary School in Ashford will be handed the keys imminently ahead of the new term in September.
Principal Jon Rutland says the building is now only days away from completion after a row between Kent County Council (KCC) and housing developers Hodson threatened to scupper its opening.
KCC, which has been responsible for building the school, was locked in discussions with Hodson over the ownership of a strip of land on which the access road is being built.
It forced back-up plans to be drawn up in the form of a planning application for a new temporary teaching block the school’s existing site in Jemmett Road.
Contractors Bowmer & Kirkland, the firm selected by the Department for Education as the main builder, is now set to hand it over to the school this week.
It means a total of 450 pupils from Year 7 to Year 9 will transfer to the new site in September.
The school has also released images showing its new signage now in place, while the main hall, dance studio and sports areas are almost finished.
Mr Rutland said: “The building is days from completion and we are expecting it to be handed over to the school over the coming week.
“Packing of our current site has begun and will be moved during the holidays in preparation for September.
“Much work will continue over the summer break and I will update families on our return.”
The school will eventually grow by a year group each year until 1,140 pupils aged between 11 and 18 attend.
They will have access to state-of-the-art facilities, including specialist spaces like labs, a drama studio, design and technology workshops and art rooms and PE facilities alongside a total of 32 classrooms.
Bosses have confirmed the first cohort of 450 pupils will begin their first day of the new term at the school, which sits on the corner of Ashford Road (A28) and Chilmington Green Road, at 8.40am on September 8.
Work started on site in February 2024, almost two years after plans for the school were approved as part of the Chilmington Green development.
The new village on the south west edge of Ashford will eventually comprise 5,750 homes, four primary schools and shops alongside healthcare and sports facilities.
Yet Hodson continues to face scrutiny over its request to drop millions of pounds of agreed infrastructure and community investments required as part of its planning permission.
It was revealed in December the developer wants to ditch more than £50 million of funding – including the £30m major road improvement to dual Chart Road near the Cobbs Wood industrial estate between the Matalan and ‘Tank’ roundabouts.
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A planning inspector conducted a public inquiry earlier this year into Hodson’s applications to amend various elements of its legally binding infrastructure and community provisions – known as a Section 106 agreement.
The inspector’s final verdict on whether to allow Hodson’s requests is yet to be published.
In April, KCC said it was forced to step in to ensure the school’s completion, claiming Hodson had not completed vital and necessary infrastructure work.
But the developer said it did not own the land to carry out the work needed on a route known as Access C, which is being built to help combat congestion during busy periods.
A new road called The Avenue will connect Chilmington Green Road to a new roundabout on the A28 at the Sandy Lane junction.
Existing access between Chilmington Green Road and the A28 will then be blocked off.
The developer added it had not been able to make a final legal agreement with KCC, meaning its contractor could not access the public highway to complete the works, leaving KCC to carry them out instead.
