New-build primary school set for Barrow
Closed since 2023, Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School is on the path to reopen at last, having secured planning permission for a two-storey block to replace its Victorian predecessor.
Westmorland and Furness councillors voted to approve the project this week.
Designed by AHR and funded through the Department for Education’s School Rebuilding Programme, the new Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School would be 17,400 sq ft – approximately 3,000 sq ft larger than the existing site.
These existing buildings were deemed to be in too poor condition for students and had been vacant over the past few years. Students had instead been learning in a temporary building on the old school playground and at St Bernard’s Catholic High School.
The buildings would be demolished to make way for the two-storey new build, which would occupy the same one-acre plot off Lumley Street in Barrow.
When it opens, the school will have capacity to teach children ages 3 to 11, with 210 student spaces and 26 nursery ones. There would be 42 staff at the complex.
The ground floor of the new-build would focus on communal facilities, including the assembly hall and a reception area. It would also be home to the younger students, with the nursery and stage-one classrooms setting up shop there.
The first floor would hold the stage-two classrooms, a practical classroom, the library, and a staff room.
Outside the building would be two playgrounds – one of which would be segregated for the nursery students.
Avison Young is the planner for the project, with Galliford Try Construction lined up as the main contractor.
The project team also includes Fenton+Reece, Ridge and Partners, Stantec, Cundall, and SpaceZero.
To learn more about the project search B12/2026/0033 on Westmorland and Furness Council’s planning portal for Barrow.
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