Willmott Dixon lands £24m expansion at Rugby's Avon Valley School

Willmott Dixon has secured a £24 million contract to expand the Avon Valley School & Performing Arts College in Rugby, Warwickshire.

The client is Warwickshire County Council. The project responds to pressure on local classrooms from new housing development in the area.

What will the £24m scheme deliver?

The expansion adds 300 secondary school places, lifting the school's capacity to 1,400 pupils. The works include:

• A new three-storey teaching block
• A four-court sports hall
• A 20-place specialist provision for pupils with communication and interaction needs

The specialist unit addresses a specific segment of special educational needs provision, delivered as part of the mainstream school expansion rather than as a standalone facility.

How will construction affect the school?

Michelle Cotterill, director at Willmott Dixon, confirmed the school will remain open throughout the build. She said phased work is due to finish in April 2028.

The phasing approach allows the school to continue operating on its existing site while the new teaching block and sports hall take shape around it.

Where does the win sit in Willmott Dixon's pipeline?

The Rugby contract strengthens the contractor's schools workload in the Midlands. The company is currently engaged on two other education projects in the region:

• The £11.8 million Garendon Primary School in Loughborough
• The £38 million transformation of Outwood Academy Kirkby in Nottinghamshire

Taken together, the three schemes represent more than £73 million of education sector work for Willmott Dixon across the Midlands, spanning primary, secondary and academy projects.

The Avon Valley award places the contractor at the centre of Warwickshire's response to population growth. Council-commissioned school expansions tied to housing delivery continue to provide a steady stream of mid-sized construction contracts in the region, and the April 2028 completion date gives the county a fixed horizon for bringing the additional 300 places online.