PUPILS and staff at a Winchester school gathered to watch bosses fix the final piece of their multi-million pound new building.

St Swithun’s Junior School will move into a new £10 million facility next year after almost a year of building work.

Around 100 pupils watched the topping out ceremony at the mixed private school, which shares its Alresford Road grounds with St Swithun’s girl’s secondary school.

The existing school block, which has been added to in small pieces over the last few decades, will be demolished after the new school opens to ensure the site is in keeping with South Downs National Park guidelines.

It will include a science laboratory, art studio, gym, classrooms, performing arts space and a media suite.

The new building will create space for around 60 extra pupils, boosting the school’s capacity to 256.

Headteacher Pim Grimes said: “We are delighted that progress on our new school is going so well, and that our pupils have been so engaged with the process.

“With the increase in capacity, we still have some spaces available in most year groups for September 2015 and I am taking great pride in showing prospective parents how our grand plans are becoming a reality.”