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The Beeches Primary School closed after overnight fire, expected to reopen tomorrow

News

The Beeches Community Primary School in Ipswich has closed today following a fire that broke out on Tuesday night.

The fire is believed to have involved solar panels on the school's roof.

The big picture: Fire crews from three stations responded to the blaze, highlighting the seriousness of the incident and the coordinated emergency response in Ipswich.

Why it matters: The closure affects all pupils and comes at the start of the new school term, disrupting education and potentially causing childcare challenges for parents.

The Beeches Primary School
No damage was visible from the entrance of the schoolOliver Rouane-WilliamsIpswich.co.uk

Key details:

  • Fire reported at 21:45 on Tuesday

  • 3 fire crews responded from Ipswich East, Princes Street and Needham Market

  • Fire officially extinguished by 23:03

  • School closed today but expected to reopen tomorrow pending safety assessments

What they're saying: The school's website states:

"Thank you to all families for your understanding following the fire at The Beeches last night. We are pleased to report that there is no internal damage to the school at all.

"We are currently conducting safety checks to ensure that the building is completely safe and at this stage we expect to be able to open the school to all pupils tomorrow, Thursday 5th September, as normal. Confirmation will be posted here later today."

What's next: School officials hope to reopen as soon as possible, pending the safety assessment results. Parents and guardians will receive further information.

Council set to award up to £5.3m to undisclosed town centre regeneration projects

News

Ipswich Borough Council's Executive is set to approve grants worth up to £5.3m to revitalise empty spaces in the town centre.

The big picture: An independent expert panel has selected five projects to receive funding from the Town Centre Regeneration Fund, part of the Ipswich Town Deal.

  • The chosen projects will initially receive small development grants to test feasibility and costs.

  • After this stage, the panel will consider awarding larger grants for project delivery.

  • The selected projects have still not been disclosed to the public.

  • £5m remains in the fund for the council to bring other key buildings back into use.

A photo of The Botanist, a bar in Ipswich
The Botanist was one project funded by the Towns Deal fundOliver Rouane-WilliamsIpswich.co.uk

What they're saying:

Councillor Neil MacDonald, Ipswich Borough Council Leader, said: "There are some very exciting projects being recommended by the expert panel and I look forward to being able to reveal them when further checks have been made on their viability."

David Ralph, the Town Deal and Ipswich Vision Board Chair, added: "There were 21 applications to the Regeneration Fund and the best five have been selected by the expert panel. I look forward to the projects coming to fruition and helping Ipswich to thrive."

Why it matters: The Towns Fund programme aims to significantly improve the Ipswich town centre, building on previous projects such as The Botanist, Suffolk New College, and the University.

What's next: The Executive will meet on Tuesday 10 September 2024 at 6pm to discuss the grants.

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