A NEW 710-pupil eco primary school is taking shape in Uxbridge as part of a £150m borough programme.

Construction work is underway after Hillingdon mayor, Cllr Allan Kauffman, and leader Ray Puddifoot broke the ground for the two-storey school on the former RAF Uxbridge site at St Andrew's Park.

The school building programme in Hillingdon will also improve existing school premises.

It is not yet known how the school will be run. Plans have been submitted to the Department for Education with a decision due in December.

The council's preferred provider is the Elliot Foundation, a charitable academy trust which specialises in primary schools.

The new building will include a green roof with solar lights to supply up to 20 per cent of the school's energy, aid water absorption and encourage wildlife.

Eco-credentials also include source pumps, which will extract heat from the ground and collect rain water.

The school will accept its first pupils in September next year, with places for 630 in its main section and 45 in the nursery.