Building work on a new school in Dagenham has begun.

Barking and Dagenham Post: Headteacher Russell Taylor, councillor Evelyn Carpenter, Darren Cutts and Steve Smithson from Be First, Richard Hallgate-Hills from the Local Education Partnership and pupils. Picture: Andrew BakerHeadteacher Russell Taylor, councillor Evelyn Carpenter, Darren Cutts and Steve Smithson from Be First, Richard Hallgate-Hills from the Local Education Partnership and pupils. Picture: Andrew Baker (Image: © 2018 Andrew Baker studio@andrewbakerphotographer.com)

Robert Clack Lymington Fields School, which will be part of Robert Clack School on a separate site, will have 1,350 places for pupils.

The £26 million project will have 42 classrooms, a sports hall and two multi-purpose games areas.

Headteacher and former Robert Clack pupil, Russell Taylor, said: “This new school will build on Robert’s Clack proud record of making sure our young people have the skills and confidence to be successful in whatever they chose to do.”

The combined school population of Robert Clack and the new site, which is due to be completed in 2020, will be 4,000.

Cabinet member for education, councillor Evelyn Carpenter, said: “Robert Clack is a highly popular school and the new campus will enable them to offer primary school places to parents for the first time.

“Investing in our schools is not just about bricks and mortar, it’s investing in this borough’s future.”

Darren Cutts, from Be First, the council’s regeneration company, said: “Our partnership with Mid-Group, the local education partnership, the council and schools is as deep and strong as the foundations this new school will be built on. And they lay the foundations of building a better Barking and Dagenham.”