An extra 30 places per year group are set to created at a secondary school in Great Dunmow.

Essex County Council has approved proposals to convert office space at the Helena Romanes School, in Parsonage Downs, Great Dunmow, into new classrooms, expand the dining room and replacing a damaged sports hall floor, to help accommodate for the new pupils.

The new places are needed to serve the increasing demand for secondary places in the Great Dunmow area.

A council report states: “There is predicted to be a significant growing deficit of secondary school places in the Great Dunmow area in the next ten years with a shortfall of 14 year seven places in 2018/19 growing up to 104 year seven places by 2027/28, as identified in the latest Essex County Council school places ten year plan.”

To meet the demand, the school will take on 270 students in the new intake in September, up from 240.

The statement continues: “The School is working independently with a housing developer to explore the option of a re-location and further expansion from 2021 onwards.

“If this is unsuccessful, Essex County Council has completed a viability report which shows it can add an additional two forms of entry of 300 pupils onto the school’s current site which would cater for the additional demand from 2021 onwards.”

Building work on site is set to begin in the summer holidays.