hub South West Scotland has handed over the new Prestwick Educational Campus project to South Ayrshire Council.
Based at Sherwood Road in Prestwick, the new educational campus has been developed on the site of the existing Glenburn Primary School and will accommodate the school’s current intake, as well as the relocation of the nearby St Ninian’s Primary School and the creation of a new Early year’s centre and nursery
As the Authority’s development partner, hub South West Scotland (hub SW) managed the development and delivery of the project and worked closely with construction partner Morgan Sindall, architect BDP, independent tester Capita and principal designer and cost consultant Gardiner and Theobald.
South Ayrshire Council formally announced the project in May 2019 with work beginning on site in early 2020. The new campus consists of 22 classrooms and multi purpose rooms spread over two storeys, with an Early Years centre and nursery facilities for children aged two to five.
Incorporating leading sustainable methods into the project was key with the new campus running purely on electric power thanks to the installation of roof solar panels and air source heat pumps for heating.
In addition to a state-of-the-art sports hall, the new Prestwick Educational Campus will feature outstanding outdoor sporting amenities, including an all-weather pitch.
A new allotment garden, willow garden and sensory garden will offer students and children from the surrounding community the opportunity to learn about local nature.
Councillor Stephen Ferry, South Ayrshire Council’s Portfolio Holder for Education said: “We’re committed to providing children and young people with the best possible start in life, and I’m delighted that pupils can now set foot into their brand new school after what I’m sure felt like a long wait for them.
“Prestwick Educational Campus will provide a modern and engaging environment for learning and will ensure pupils can thrive throughout their years at school. We’re continuing to transform learning in South Ayrshire with our school build programme, and I know that both schools will benefit from the shared provision.
“I’d like to extend my thanks to everyone involved in making this project a huge success, and wish all of the children, teachers and school staff good luck for the year ahead.”
Michael Ross, Chief Executive of hub South West Scotland, said: “We are incredibly proud to have led the delivery of this project for South Ayrshire Council, delivering the project early – enabling the full school to decant before the end of the summer holidays – on budget, and to the highest quality standards.
“This is the 14th project we have successfully delivered for South Ayrshire Council. It is this long-standing relationship that has enabled us a platform to invest in ongoing initiatives, continuous improvement and processes to support our joint agenda for excellence in project delivery which has been demonstrated and proven here.
“This platform allows us to implement our unique Build Ayrshire events that upskill SMEs, facilitate our hub clubs that create a network of connected Ayrshire businesses and also reinforces our partnership with Ayrshire College where we support curriculum activities.
“This project was a real team effort. A huge well done goes out to all parties involved, the local supply chain and our construction partner Morgan Sindall.”
Stuart Parker, managing director of Morgan Sindall Construction’s Scotland region, said: “It’s an honour to deliver this state-of-the-art educational campus to the local community.
“Our aim was to create an inspiring space where students can socialise, learn and flourish in an environment that feels special to them – we can’t wait for everyone to enjoy it.
“This campus is yet another example of working collaboratively with our partners to create special places that have a positive impact, so a huge thank you to all involved.”
Lindsey Mitchell, Architect Director, BDP Glasgow Studio, said: “I’m thrilled that pupils will be starting their first day at nursery or school at the new Prestwick Campus. We received such positive engagement and involvement with the pupils, parents, staff and the wider Prestwick community and I hope the buildings and open spaces we have created reflect their needs and views.
“The design celebrates the identity of both of the primary schools and the shared space will help bring together each of the school communities.
“We aimed to create something authentic for the community that will be inclusive, welcoming and provide a platform for contemporary learning and teaching. The buildings present a positive, community facing frontage that will provide a strong sense of arrival to all pupils, staff and visitors regardless of whether they are using the facilities, teaching or learning at the campus.”
The outputs delivered as part of the Prestwick Educational Campus project are not limited to the built environment. hub South West Scotland tenders and awards projects to help drive job creation and investment in the local Ayrshire SME base.
As a collective team we facilitated 14 apprenticeships filled by local young people. As part of the work experience programme, attendees supported the groundworks team with setting out, kerbing, landscaping and joinery. They were also given the opportunity to observe key milestone activity on site including cement pours and completion of steel work.
hub SW tendered the project competitively to maximise local economic output which saw two jobs created and also saw a graduate quantity surveyor and graduate QHSE manager hired to work on the project.
hub SW has held multiple workshops with local SMEs and ensured that 80% of packages were tendered by territory supply chain.
This project has awarded £9m of works packages to subcontractors within the hub SW territory, included within that is £3.7m of spend with subcontractors in Ayrshire and £3m of that with South Ayrshire Council based businesses.
