Each module was delivered to site with a high performance concrete floor already in place, further reducing work on site, improving quality and acoustics, and providing a robust finish for a demanding secondary school environment. Commenting on the project, Sean Sumner, deputy head at Cambourne Village College said: “The children and staff absolutely love their new school and you would never know the teaching wings were built in a factory. The feel is very solid and robust and we particularly like the amount of space and light, the wide corridors and the size of the classrooms.” “Building work in schools can cause huge disruption to teaching and there is the safety aspect to consider – with off-site construction you can minimise the impact of those issues. If we need to expand the school in the coming years, we would definitely consider an off-site solution again, which would give us the opportunity to increase capacity very quickly and easily.” The school campus features a central mall with three teaching wings radiating from it and a series of sheltered courtyards to encourage outdoor learning. The ends of the curriculum blocks each have full height stair towers and a balcony at first floor level creating an additional outside space. There are also circulation areas which open on to the central core with no divisions between zones to allow passive surveillance to reduce bullying and anti-social behaviour. The west wing is dedicated to science and technology, the central wing houses generic classrooms for maths, languages and humanities, and facilities for IT and art are located in the east wing. A cross laminated timber structure was used for the central core that accommodates the larger communal spaces such as the dining hall, sports halls and gym. The building has been clad in a combination of timber, dark brickwork and render to create a strong identity for the new school and to reflect the surrounding landscape. Render was used for the teaching areas, interspersed with panels of timber cladding.
Well Educated Banking www.lloydsbank.com/ schoolbanking
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dham Wymon orfolk N High in tted from fi e has benicated sixth The new a ded e developed accommodation was ntr built to link to the form ce a sustainable existing & office g lar buildings.arts u usin d The classrooms o m were designed on a recycledilding single basis to provide a bu
ADDING A SIXTH FORM CENTRE In 2011, Wymondham High in Norfolk, which now has Academy status, benefited from a dedicated sixth form centre developed using a highly sustainable recycled modular building. The additional teaching accommodation was needed at the time as the school caters for over 1,600 pupils, with 400 in the sixth form from the start of the 2011/12 academic year and plans are in place to increase pupil numbers to 2,000. The purpose-designed facility by Foremans Relocatable Building Systems, was craned into position in just one day during the school holidays to minimise disruption to staff and students. The single-storey building accommodates five seminar rooms for students studying social sciences, and sixth form facilities, including a break-out area, toilets and administration office. Commenting on the new building, Victoria Musgrave, Principal at Wymondham High Academy said: “This project has definitely exceeded our expectations and both staff and students are genuinely thrilled with it. They like the ambience it has created, the flexibility of the space, and the fact that we now have a dedicated facility for our sixth form.” LEEDS SCHOOLS GO MODULAR Since May 2012, Leeds City Council has been improving its school buildings using a modular approach. Three modular buildings have been built to provide a total of 3380m2 of accommodation to the Roundhay, Bracken Edge and Wykebeck area. Bracken Edge Primary School was a phased demolition of an existing single story flat roofed primary school classroom accommodation with partial refurbishment of existing hall. The new two story steel framed nursery and primary school was constructed off site at Premier Interlink.
compact and energy efficient build, the complete size of the build was 15 modules at 440m2 total. The external finish was completed to match the existing building using the same palate of materials and colours, brick slips and composite panels. The classrooms have skylights providing both natural ventilation and appropriate ray lighting levels. For Roundhay, the scheme consisted of a new primary school which has been developed as a second site for Roundhay School, extending their overall age range from 18 years down to 4. A key feature of the site is the difference in levels across the site which slopes up from Wetherby Road. The Primary Campus, for 4 –11 year olds, operates as a ‘split site’ part of Roundhay School. The building provides 14 classrooms, a large hall, a small hall, a learning resource centre, design and technology space, group rooms, office and staff areas, storage, toilets, kitchen and plant areas. The school is of modest proportions, planned over two storeys with an approximate 7.5 metres to the eaves and 9 metres to the ridge. The school’s design has been developed to provide a quality environment while minimising the use of energy and carbon output. The building is well insulated with good levels of daylight and provided with natural ventilation. The building solution delivered balances the provision of thermal comfort, robust design solutions and low energy delivery to provide a high quality primary school facility. Premier Interlink constructed the 52 bays built and fitted out at Premier Interlink’s factory in the East Riding of Yorkshire, before being delivered to the site for installation. L
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