A BRAND new £28million school in the centre of Canvey will kickstart the regeneration of the town centre, it has been claimed.

Politicians, teachers and pupils joined representatives from building firm Skanska for a ceremony to mark the official start of construction of the new Castle View School.

Work to demolish part of the old Furtherwick Park School and prepare the site, in Folksville Road, for the new school has been going on since July.

James Williams, project manager for Skanska, said residents can expect to see the concrete frame in place by Christmas.

He added: “Everything is going well. The piling finished two weeks early and the construction of the frame has started on time.”

The rebuild is part of a massive shake-up of education on Canvey, which will see Furtherwick Park School close when its final fifth year leaves next summer.

As well as the Year 11s, Castle View’s 240 Year 6 pupils are based on the site as there is not enough room for them in the school’s current premises in Meppel Avenue.

Stephen Castle, Essex County Council’s cabinet member for education, admitted it had been a challenge at first to convince headteachers and governors that closing Furtherwick and moving Castle View was the best option.

He said: “I went to 18 public meetings and we did a huge consultation.

“But in 18 months’ time we will have a fantastic building right in the middle of the town centre to kickstart the regeneration.”

The new school is being funded by the Building Schools for the Future Programme, which has now been scrapped by the new coalition Government.

Castle View and Cornelius Vermuyden were part of Wave Four of the project in Essex.

Finance for the projects – worth nearly £50million – was due to be signed off the day after the general election, but was rushed forward to a week earlier to make sure the funding was safe.