PUPILS will experience dining in a fine new canteen after a school revealed £1million plans.

The Appleton School, in Croft Road, Benfleet , managed to secure money from the Government to build a new, glass-fronted canteen.

The old cafeteria, built in the Sixties, is struggling to accommodate all of the school’s 1,200 students, as more than 500 pupils now take advantage of the school’s healthy dinners menu.

The ambitious revamp will see the old building completely refurbished and extended to create a more modern facility, which will be more than 40 per cent bigger.

The development will also include new offices and meeting rooms, as well as state-of-the-art kitchen facilities.

New wall and floor coverings will create a light and airy dining space.

Headteacher Karen Kerridge said: “In a way, we have become victims of our own success, because the healthy school dinners we have here have become so popular.

“It is so important we promote fresh food and encourage our pupils to lead a healthy lifestyle and this new cafeteria will really help us achieve that.

“This is such an exciting thing for the school, and we have had a lot of positive feedback from students.

“The old facility was adequate, but because it was built in the Sixties it is very much in need of refurbishment. We cannot wait until this all gets under way.”

The school has now submitted a planning application to Castle Point Council for approval.

If given the go-ahead, staff say the rebuild could be completed as early as March next year.