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The projected cost of a new school in Caerphilly has risen by nearly £3 million before a brick has been laid.

Demolition work is expected to begin at the town’s Plasyfelin Primary School this summer, ahead of a phased rebuild of a larger replacement.

Asbestos removal works, additional surveying and temporary classrooms have all added to the project’s bill, as has “general cost inflation in the construction sector over the last two years”.

The project was initially expected to cost £20.48 million when approved in early 2022, but that figure has now climbed to £23.25 million.

It was already agreed the Welsh Government would contribute around 70% of the original sum, with Caerphilly County Borough Council required to make up the remainder – nearly £7.5 million.

Members of the council’s education committee have now backed a proposal to release additional funding, totalling £1.76 million, to cover its portion of the higher overall cost.

The money will come from the council’s unallocated capital grant and its education core capital budget, said Cllr Carol Andrews, the cabinet member for education.

Planning permission was approved earlier this month for the new school, which Morgan Jones ward councillor Anne Broughton-Pettit at the time said had received “widespread support” and would provide “first-class educational opportunities for pupils”.