In April 2015, I joined up with PR Associates on a £1.8 million school expansion and external remodelling project at Webheath Academy Primary School, Redditch, UK. PR Associates assisted the school in securing funding through the Education Finance Agency’s ‘Academies Capital Maintenance Fund’.
The proposed extension, serves as a new wing at the north-east end of the site consists of 5 new nursery and reception classrooms, toilets, a new staffroom to replace the existing one, as well as support spaces and covered reception area. In addition to the proposed wing, the project included the extension of the existing school hall and adjacent studio space.
As a publicly-financed project, the brief demanded that the proposed design demonstrate value for money.
For the proposed extension, a construction of load bearing masonry and engineered timer was chosen as the most cost-effective approach, and most suitable considering the nature of the design.
The ground conditions on the site were poor, and required additional engineering to find the required ground resistance to take the load of the structure. A mini-piled, reinforced, concrete ground beam foundation was elected as the most appropriate solution. Revit was employed in the final layout of the structure to clarify the design solution – easing construction, and reducing the risk of errors.
The new car park was designed using a new, sustainable approach reducing the volume of storm water attenuation required, and in turn reducing costs.
I was approached by PR Associates to produce a full tender and construction package following planning approval for the build, which included a complete set of floor plans, elevations, sections and details to give an accurate description of the design ready for construction.
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