Davlyn Construction has secured over £6m of work transforming the sports facilities at a historic Derbyshire school.
The Derby based firm was chosen as the main build contractor for the work at Repton School in South Derbyshire.
Davlyn has just completed phase one of the works to create a new strength and conditioning gym and a 1250m2 state-of-the-art sports hall, designed by Matthew Montague Architects.
Repton School, established in 1557, is a co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils and has around 650 students.
The new facility will be used for indoor hockey, netball, basketball and football along with new squash courts, changing rooms, seating and sports storage area. The contract, worth £3m, also included the demolition of the old 1960s squash courts.
Davlyn has now started on the second phase of works, also worth £3m. This will see the existing Tanyard Building extended and refurbished to create a new entrance, changing rooms, briefing room, link corridor, social area, viewing gallery and the creating of a bigger car park.
David Gaskin, Director at Davlyn Construction, said: “Firstly, we’re delighted to have been appointed as the main build contractor on such a prestigious job at Repton School.
“We’re really pleased to have delivered phase one of the project to a high standard and on time and it’s fantastic to see the school and its students benefiting from it.
“Now we are very much focused on phase two and delivering that to an equally high standard. We have the constraints of working on a live site and within a conservation area but that is something we are very experienced in.
“We have worked with Repton School for over 14 years and have established a very good working relationship with them. We are proud to be part of their plans to deliver even better facilities for their students and staff.
“Education is a very important sector for us as a company so we are particularly pleased to have been awarded this contract.”
Repton School’s Bursar, Carl Bilson, said: “Sport is a key element in the all-round education provided by Repton School, and facilities play an important in our provision. The School is pleased to be partnering with Davlyn again for the current project, and delighted with the outcome of the first phase.
“The addition of a second sports hall has already made a huge difference for our pupils, and also for local clubs, including Derbyshire Spartans basketball. Much larger than most sports halls, it is particularly well suited to indoor hockey, netball and basketball, with seating for 250 spectators, a top quality sprung-wood floor and walls and lighting designed to the highest Sport England specifications.
“The facility includes two brand new glass-backed squash courts which are already being put to good use by our pupils and the Repton Squash Club. The third element of this first phase, the Strength and Conditioning Suite, is also a first class facility, which complements and enhances the work being done by the School’s teaching and coaching staff, and also non-school users such as City of Derby Swimming.
“Having worked with Davlyn on many projects at the School over the last 14 years, it is no surprise that they are doing such a great job on the sports centre project. It feels much more like a partnership than a client-contractor relationship. As well as achieving a high quality specification, on time and on budget, they are great to work with, always mindful of the challenges of working within a live school site.”
Work is due to be completed by August 2019.
