A struggling school has been given permission to build a new three-storey block that will provide hundreds of new school places to Southend.

The new building at Chase High School, on Prittlewell Chase, was unanimously approved by councillors on Wednesday and is expected to create an extra 14 classes and 300 extra secondary school places.

It comes just eight weeks after league tables from the Department of Education ranked the school as one of the lowest performing in Essex and an Ofsted report said pupil outcomes are “well below average”.

Speaking at a planning meeting on Wednesday, Councillor Steve Buckley said: "I think with more and more school places required, more pressure on the town and having read the proposals and viewed the site, I believe these facilities would be very welcome to the area."

The new building will be near to the sixth form block, on a grass area which is currently used for parking. It will result in the loss of 23 parking spaces in that area but an additional 12 places will be added to the south.

The expansion, which a council officer said would "ensure that Southend can meet its duty of supplying schools places," is part of a wider effort by the council to create an extra 1,150 school places over the next five years.

Ofsted data also shows that Chase High School is currently over-subscribed with 1,078 pupils but has a capacity of 980.

Echo:

Other school expansions expected to take place by 2023, include adding 300 places to Belfairs Academy and 150 to Shoeburyness High School, St Thomas More High School, St Bernard’s High School and Eastwood High School. The Cecil Jones Academy will also add 100 places.

In September last year, the Department of Education warned Southend would need two new secondary schools to address the growing demand, but currently there are no plans to build them.

At the end of 2017, plans were scrapped for a new free school by St Laurence Park, in Eastwoodbury Lane, because the council said the existing schools could provide additional places to address the growing demand.

Chase High School was contacted for comment.