A school’s bid for £3.7 million of funding has been approved by the Department for Education.

It means Fulston Manor can go ahead with the second phase of its building project to improve its facilities.

Planning permission has already been granted by Swale council for a new sixth-form block, library, six classrooms, four “flexible teaching bases”, a “learning resource centre” and administration space.

It is hoped building work will start in the summer holidays and that it will open either in September next year or January 2016.

The news comes three months after a new two-storey maths and English block was officially opened at the school, in Sittingbourne.

It involved the creation of a new entrance as well as 16 new classrooms allowing up to 500 pupils to be taught at any one time, plus office space, a radio room and intervention classroom.

The number of parking spaces has also increased from 50 to 64. A grant awarded by the government department for the same amount covered the cost.

About 40% of students are still taught in temporary buildings at the school. The aim is that by the end of all the phases, there will be no temporary buildings.

Head teacher Alan Brookes said: “We found out via email on Monday that we’d been successful. It’s a huge amount of money.

“Apparently they had four times the amount of bids than [the amount of money] they had to distribute, so we’re very pleased.

“It will be a big building as it will take up about 1,350 sq metres. The funding is over two years, with the majority of the money coming in the first financial year.”