Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Richard Youle

Why the roof on a £3.5m Swansea school has had to be replaced after just 15 years

A quarter of a million pounds has been spent on a new roof for a 15-year-old primary school in Swansea after defects were found.

Sketty Primary School, off Llwyn Mawr Close, was completed in 2004 to accommodate nearly 500 pupils.

It cost around £3.5 million, and has a nursery and some 15 classrooms.

A roof should normally last considerably longer than 15 years, but the council said it could not ask the contractor to pay the bill as the defect liability period had elapsed.

The terrifying messages sent by drugs boss to customers in Wales  

A council spokesman said: "Recently, defects have appeared with the roof that could not have been identified at the time and these have started to impact on the day-to-day running of the school.

"The council has looked at all the options available to us but unfortunately the original work is no longer covered by any guarantee, nor is it recoverable from our own insurers.

"A new roof has been installed by a different contractor following a competitive tendering process.

"The £250,000 has been factored into this year’s capital maintenance programme."

The previous primary school was in Carnglas Road, Tycoch, where flats now stand.

Sketty councillor Cheryl Philpott said she'd had some fibreglass roofing installed at her house and that the warranty was 20 years.

City deal partner did not want £1.3bn scheme to succeed, claims council chief executive  

Speaking in 2004, Swansea's former cabinet member for education, John Miles, said of the new school: “This is a major development for education in Swansea.

“We need this new school to help cope with demand. It will be a modern school with modern facilities to meet the needs of modern education."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.