A TOPPING out ceremony at Churchfield Primary School in Highbridge has marked the start of the final phase of a £4.6million construction project.

Pupils who had won a painting competition to have their work displayed on hoardings on the building were among those who attended the event, along with Somerset County Council representatives.

There was also a traditional blessing from the Rev Sharon Crossman from St John’s Church of a yew branch which was tied to the highest point of the structure.

The new school, which is set to have 14 classrooms and hold around 420 children, is expected to open in September.

John Woodman, Conservative county councillor for Burnham and Highbridge South, said: “It’s fantastic we have a new school and it’s an excellent facility for Highbridge.

“It will have all the amenities of a modern school so it will be much more suited to the job than the current place.

“This venue will be great for them to learn in, which is the most important thing because education for children is very, very important.”

He said he would have liked to have seen a bigger school on the site but they were restricted by regulations.

Burnham and Highbridge LibDem district councillor Joe Leach said: “It’s good to see the school upgrading and I’m looking forward to see it in its completion.

“But it would be nice to have a larger school as Burnham and Highbridge is a fast growing town and there are never enough school places.

“Hopefully there could be a larger intake at some point so they can accommodate more children.”

St John Junior and Beechfield Infants schools closed in July 2010 to merge as Churchfield Primary School.

The construction was undertaken by Vinci Construction Limited with the help of Southwest One and pupils are currently being taught in temporary classrooms.