STAFF have been frantically packing away equipment, taking down children's artwork and saying their final goodbyes as the curtain falls on the Chalet School after 40 years.

And for acting headteacher Kathie Bryan, her staff and pupils, who all feel so at home with each other at the school for children with severe learning difficulties, the move cannot come soon enough.

The school recently celebrated its 40th anniv-ersary and the realisation that the new term will start in new purpose-built premises made the party go with a real swing.

Until now around 40 pupils at the school have had to be content with learning in crammed, inadequate and outdated facilities next to the ambulance station.

But when the £1.3m scheme is completed by the end of August, Liden Junior and Infants will merge into one revamped building on the Liden Drive site.

The Chalet School will be housed on the former infants' school site with the capacity to take more pupils.

In 1997 the scheme had been threatened with delays following a funding mix-up that put the whole project back many months.

A misunderstanding between Swindon Council officers and the Government hampered the plans. The council believed it was being loaned £1.5m from the Department for Education and Skills, but the DfES thought it was only providing a loan for £746,000.

The delays cost the council £276,000 from its capital building budget.

But the project started in February with some demolition work, asbestos removal and preliminary alterations at the site and it is hoped the school will be ready for August 30 in time for the new term on September 9.

A soft playroom, a sensory room, relaxation room, splash room and music room, costing more than £40,000, are just some of the new additions that children and teachers alike are itching to use.

The school currently caters for children suffering a variety of learning difficulties such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), physical handicaps and attention disorders such as ADHD.

It accepts children aged from three to seven, but the new school will be able to cater for children aged three to 11 and some will be able to take part in mainstream education.

Mrs Bryan, 41, said: "We've been frantically packing all the equipment away ready for the removal vans on Tuesday. "For more than 40 years we have been known as the three huts by the Magic Roundabout, but at last we are moving and I can't wait.

"It's been on the cards for about six years now so we have been used to waiting.

"We are the only school for children with complex learning difficulties in the borough. A lot of the children have problems with their communication, social skills and imagination.

"Children who suffer from physical handicaps need a little help before they can get into mainstream education, something that we really believe in."

She said that it had been a long, hard battle to get the school in the position it is in now.

"We have fought really hard for inclusion in mainstream education and have forged some great links with local schools such as Covingham Pre-school, Liden and Greenmeadow," she said. "Here we think it's important for children to be included.

"On Wednesday afternoons we have been taking a couple of the children to Liden Junior School and it's great for them to hear other children talking in class instead of just the teachers things like that we are hard pushed to provide here.

"Some of the children are just happy to potter along in their own little world and we try to get them out of that.

"I wouldn't do this job if I felt it wasn't making a difference. We enjoy a good relationship with the parents and help the children in different ways.

"Really we just want to help each child reach his or her potential, get the most out of life and be the happiest they can be.

"This place is falling apart and every single square inch is used up. At Liden we will have much more space in a clean and tidy environ-ment and will certainly not have to dodge around all the equipment.

"It's going to be fantastic and the future looks very good for the school."

The children at the Chalet School follow an adapted national curriculum.

This includes literacy and numeracy, with teachers placing a big emphasis on breaking down targets and taking things in small steps.

Five-year-old Allen Turner is oblivious to the fact he has ASD, a disability that in the words of Mrs Bryan will prevent him becoming an "extremely intelligent child".

But the youngster sets about his basic reading skills with the kind of boundless enthusiasm that makes people who meet him feel very humble.

He sits at his desk attaching labels of the names of family members to a Velcro board a task he does with ease. In the playground six-year-old Timothy Irons, who suffers from ADHD, and friend Christopher Webb were excited about moving onto Eldene Primary School at the start of the new school year.

Timothy said: "I really like it here, especially the computer.

"I've made lots of friends, but I'm looking forward to going to big school where I'm going to make even more special friends."

Christopher added: "I like the colouring we do and all the clown stories.

"I will miss it here, but I'm going to make more new friends."