THERE was cause for celebration at a long-awaited city centre primary school last week when children, parents and staff gathered for its official opening ceremony.

Pupils from Alban City School, in Hatfield Road, St Albans, sang songs in front of a packed audience at a special assembly last Wednesday.

Headteacher Janet Goddard also addressed guests thanking them for supporting the opening of the free school, which is located on the former University of Hertfordshire School of Law site and took in its first intake of students in September.

She said: “It has been lovely to see the school come to fruition and to be part of a process and to have an exciting opportunity to provide much-needed school places for children in St Albans.

“Today is a celebration of everything that has been going on. It is a chance to say thanks to all the people who have worked so hard to make this happen.”

Before the ceremony, Alex Brychta, who is an illustrator of many Oxford Reading Tree books, held workshops for the children.

He said: “I am staggered by the amount of work that must have gone into this project.

“I wish everybody here, the children and the staff, a very happy future. I only wish my own kids could have been in a school like this.”

Alban City School is the brainchild of a group of educationalists and parents, led by former headteacher of Aboyne Lodge, Linda Crawley.

They first submitted proposals two years ago but things did not run smoothly as the Department of Education turned down their initial application and they received criticism from residents about the possibility of increased traffic congestion along Hatfield Road.

The state-funded school will continue to admit 60 students each academic year until they reach full capacity, which is expected to be in 2018.