DELIGHT and relief has followed this week's news that a Caterham school's "horrendous" canteen block will finally be replaced.
Confirmation that the £1.57m project has won funding from Surrey County Council ends a ten-year wait to replace de Stafford School's rotting and aging building.
The "eyesore" at the school in Burntwood Lane is about 50 years old.
A behind-closed-doors meeting of county councillors on Tuesday gave the project the long-awaited financial go-ahead, to the joy of many.
Head teacher Caroline Longhurst said: "It's great news.
"The innovative and modern building will give a boost to the whole school.
"The current kitchen block is damp and rotten, and has become a horrendous eyesore.
"Part of the block had to be shut down at one stage because it was in a bad state, but the students never complained about the disruption."
The construction project should get under way this spring, with a projected completion date of some time in November.
The new building will house a dining hall, modern kitchens, landscaped grounds and a play area.
Announcing the decision, county council leader David Hodge said de Stafford School had made "huge improvements in recent years."
He added: "This investment will underline to parents what a good option this school is for their children."
School chiefs, including previous head teacher Mark Phillips, tried in vain for several years to gain the funding for the replacement.
The scheme received a jolt in December when Tandridge District Council officers raised a formal objection over the potential loss of several mature trees.
That objection was subsequently overcome when the siting of the proposed block was moved slightly.
A previous scheme two years earlier also ran into a council objection.
Planning officers concluded back then that the four external canopies envisaged in the plan would be "inappropriate development" on the green belt site.
Meanwhile, school business manager Sheila Bennett said the new facilities would be versatile, hosting assemblies and also community activities such as wedding receptions.
She said: "The old canteen block is the one thing that detracts from all the good things at the school.
"Its replacement will be really impressive, with the mainly glass design giving lovely views over the playing fields."
Miss Longhurst said they would be establishing a temporary dining area during the construction.
She said the new facilities would be made available to the wider community through adult education classes.
Pupils have also welcomed the imminent investment to upgrade the school, while Caterham Hill county councillor John Orrick said: "I'm delighted with the news. It's long overdue.
"The current canteen block was built in the 1960s and looks about 20 years beyond its expected life."
He added that the school was "progressing in leaps and bounds".
