TWO south Wiltshire secondary schools are set to expand to meet the rising demand for pupil places in the next decade.

Wellington Academy, in Ludgershall, and The Stonehenge School in Amesbury need to grow as more than 4,000 service personnel and their families move to Salisbury Plain from Germany, starting in March next year.

Construction is set to begin during half-term at Stonehenge School after it was given the go-ahead in July last year for a £6.5million extension.

Wellington Academy is also vying to increase its size and has applied for planning permission to create a Year 7 hub building to “better support and facilitate the transition of pupils from primary to secondary school”.

The planning application states: “At first the majority of time will be spent within the hub building, with occasional sorties to other areas of the school, for PE for example.

“During the year, time spent in other parts of the school will gradually increase, building pupils’ confidence and sense of belonging to the wider school.”

The block is expected to be built on two hectares of land given by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation through a community funding agreement.

It will include extra teaching and dining space, along with science labs.

Currently the academy has around 800 pupils but it could offer up to 400 additional spaces by 2025 if the plan is approved.

Stonehenge School, which currently has 700 pupils is expected to peak at 1,150 students in the coming decade, with the school currently over-subscribed.

Chairman of governors Kelly Godwin and head teacher Nigel Roper said in a joint statement: “Everyone is looking forward to 2018 with a great deal of enthusiasm and optimism.

“It’s a superb transformation and an exciting investment which will benefit the Amesbury community for years.”

The new building will provide 24 extra teaching rooms, four of which will be fully-equipped computer suites.