YOUNGSTERS in Darlington took time out of their classes to pay a visit to the building site of their new school yesterday.

Work on the new £2.1m Firthmoor Primary School is developing rapidly, with a completion date set for next January.

Since the builders arrived in January this year, the foundations and floors have been laid and the walls are taking shape.

More than 6,000 tonnes of earth have been moved, 450 tonnes of concrete have been poured and 4,000 bricks from a total of 90,000 have been laid.

Once completed, the school, which will be the first built by Darlington Borough Council as a unitary authority, will provide 300 primary places and 26 nursery places.

The school will include an information technology suite, library, music and art studio, and a generous-sized hall, along with top sporting facilities.

Councillor Eleanor Lister, the council's cabinet member for education, said: "It is good to see such an exciting development taking shape so quickly before our very eyes.

"I am sure the children are as keen as me to see the school completed and set to play an important role, not just in the education of the pupils, but in the whole community."