New canopy at Abraham Darby Academy taking shape

This is the new canopy taking shape at a £35 million flagship school in Telford – 10 months after the previous design spectacularly collapsed, injuring five workers.

The redesigned canopy across the front of the new Abraham Darby Academy in Madeley is now almost complete.

The project was delayed for a month while health and safety inspectors examined the building.

It is the final piece of the jigsaw for the new school, which is due for completion in June, ready for the academy's pupils to move in in July.

Richard Collin, Framework Manager at the developers Kier Group, said the design of the canopy had been altered to make it more structurally sound.

He said: "It looks similar to the previous design but the difference is it's got columns all along the front edge. The steel work and timber is now in place. It will not take long to complete."

Mr Collin said the canopy had been designed to create a striking entrance to the World Heritage Site a mile away.

The Woodlands Primary School and a new leisure centre on the same site were opened as scheduled in January but the academy's move was put back while the developers sought planning permission for a redesigned canopy.