THE new campus of a Portland academy is set to be finished on time as building work nears completion and pupils get a first sight of their new school.

Pupils and parents from IPACA have been enjoying tours of its new Maritime House campus ahead of the pupils moving in in September.

The Dorset Echo was invited on a tour with a group of pupils to see how the building was progressing.

Plans have moved on considerably since the Echo visited the campus last year with the new sports centre since being constructed.

The school has taken shape as well, with the new “home bases” for each of the ‘schools within schools’ taking shape, with open areas as well as side areas for learning to take place.

Learning lead design advisor, Terry White, who has been working on the project for four years, has been showing pupils around.

He said: “We spent a lot of time make sure we were getting the right acoustics. Many of these new buildings, they don’t have the right acoustics in.

“Wates, the construction company, will hand the building over at the end of the second week in July. They’ll then continue to do some work.”

Pupils have been shown specialist arts facilities as well as the home bases they will be set up in.

Many of the groups have now had tours and got to see where they will be learning from next year.

The campus features a swimming pool as well as the newly-built sports centre and will incorporate features of the building including the theatre.

Mr White said: “I would say we’ve probably got 20 percent more out of the remodelled building than we would if we were building a new school.

“We have actually come up with a really good unique building in terms of facilities.”

The building has been designed especially for IPACA’s ‘schools within schools ‘model, with the facilities of a big school but the community feel of a smaller school, where staff will know pupils all the way through.

The site has proved to be controversial, with planning rejected by councillors before the decision was overturned on appeal.