A THEATRE, cinema and conference venue are among the potential uses of a £1m multi-purpose school building being created at The Marlborough School, Woodstock.

The centre, which will be available for community use, is being created with funding from Oxfordshire County Council and the school's specialist business and enterprise college status.

Design consultants Mouchel Parkman and construction company Beard have started work on the project and have invited pupils to become involved in a bid to interest them in construction careers.

They will take part in meetings to discuss the project's progress and will be involved in decisions about decor and aspects of the design.

The single-storey building, due to be completed in December, will feature a new assembly hall, classrooms, a seminar room, office and toilets, and will be available for community hire outside school hours.

Headteacher Julie Fenn said: "This is an exciting project for us because it is the first truly multi-purpose building project that the school has been involved in.

"The new hall and classrooms are part of improvements that are being funded through our specialist school funding and money allocated to us through the county council in recognition of the need to expand our site to reflect the increase in numbers of pupils attending our school in recent years.

"We have worked closely with both Mouchel Parkman and Beard to develop a design and construction that really reflects our vision for a facility for our school and community that will be an asset for many years to come.

"The whole school community is looking forward not only to the final outcome, but also to the wealth of learning opportunities created by the presence of a range of people with skills and experience in all aspects of design and construction on our site on a daily basis."

Mouchel Parkman project manager, Tony Peck, said: "We have invited the school to use the building project as an educational resource.

"We hope that pupils will take part in meetings with us to discuss the project's activities and progress."

Adrian O'Shaughnessy, Beard's project manager, added: "We think this project offers an ideal opportunity to give young people an insight into the challenges designers and builders face on site.

"Hopefully, some Marlborough School pupils will find this project so interesting that they will consider pursuing a career in the construction industry."