New £28m secondary school opens

The school uniform was designed by students

The first of five secondary schools rebuilt in Northampton as part of a £200m Private Finance Initiative (PFI) scheme officially opens later.

The new Duston School cost £28m under the scheme, which uses private money to fund public projects and is one of the biggest PFI initiatives in Europe.

It houses state-of-the-art facilities with six IT suites, a gym, sports hall and refurbished swimming complex.

It will take Northants County Council 30 years to pay back the money.

Four other new secondary schools and six primary schools are due to open under the scheme, with another 30 schools being refurbished.

Jane Herriman, headteacher at Duston School, said: "It is a total privilege to be involved in a new school, enabling us to set a new agenda that demands high standards and offers better opportunities for our students and higher aspirations for all."

The PFI deal was signed between Northamptonshire County Council and private firm Babcock and Brown in January 2006.