Long-delayed construction of Liverpool's newest secondary school may not complete for another four years. King's Leadership Academy Wavertree confirmed it would finally welcome an initial cohort of 210 Year 7 students from September last year in temporary units, after being beset by delays.
In a bid to meet the demand for school places across the city, it had been proposed that the school open in 2024. A formal planning application has now been submitted for the building of a new structure on the former PlayStation and Natwest offices on Stephenson Way.
Completion timeline slips to 2030
However, documents have revealed full completion of demolition of the office buildings and construction of the new school may only arrive in 2030 – six years after it had originally been scheduled to open. When fully operational in 2030, the school will accommodate 1,050 pupils aged from 11 to 16 and 125 full-time equivalent staff.
King's Wavertree is the fifth secondary school in the Great Schools Trust. The trust has two secondary schools in Merseyside, King's Liverpool in Dingle and King's Hawthornes in Bootle, alongside two primary schools, including King's Northway in Wavertree and King's Lander in Litherland.
Proposed development details
The proposed development includes the erection of a new three-storey, C-shaped school building which accommodates teaching spaces, a sports hall, an activity studio, an assembly hall, a drama studio and a dining hall. The site currently houses two office blocks with associated carparking for each plot, which were both constructed in the late 1990s.
The plot and three-storey building to the west, known as Napier Court, was occupied by Sony until 2022. The plot and two-storey building to the east was occupied by NatWest until earlier this year. The proposed development will amalgamate the two existing office plots into a single school site. Once completed, the school will also be made available for community use including evening and weekend football and hard court rentals as well as classroom and hall usage.
Construction phases and community access
A reconfigured car park accessed will be constructed to the east of the new school building providing 63 spaces and a further six electric vehicle charging points. Minibus, blue badge and coach spots will also be accounted for.
Demolition of the NatWest building is proposed to begin from next April for at least six months when the construction of the new school would begin. This is proposed for completion by April 2029. The Sony building would be knocked down and current temporary units removed by December of that year. Hard play areas are expected to be handed over by September 2029 with practical completion by July 2030.
Construction access will remain fully separated from the operational school access at all stages of the project. In order to minimise disturbance to the temporary school during the first phase, as much of the mechanical demolition of the NatWest building as possible will take place in the summer holidays next year. If works proceed outside of the summer holidays, then the mechanical demolition will be planned to work east to west in order to retain a physical noise barrier to the temporary school for as long as possible. Demolition of the Sony building will take place once the school has occupied its new permanent building.
