Work has begun on a multimillion-poundextension at a school in Cheshire to create additional places. The scheme being undertaken by Salford-based MC Construction at Springfield School in Crewe will help address an urgent need for extra provision in the area for children with complex needs. The project involves building a wrap-around extension to the school’s existing sports pavilion to create eight new classrooms, ancillary spaces including calm rooms, a sensory room and a therapy room, new hygiene suites and toilets, as well as extending and remodelling existing kitchen facilities. Springfield is rated as outstanding by Ofsted and was named 2022 School of the Year in the National Schools Awards. It caters for pupils aged from four to 19 with severe learning difficulties and complex needs, including autism. Cheshire East Council’s southern planning committee unanimously backed the extension scheme to alleviate the shortfall in places at the school. Demand for specialist school provision is at an all-time high in the area. The new block is scheduled to be ready for use in September 2024. Russ Forshaw, managing director of MC Construction, said: “We’re delighted to be returning to Springfield School and to be once again partnering with Cheshire East Council. “We have a strong track record of delivering education projects across the region, and the construction of the new teaching block will be our largest to date. “This is a significant and important scheme which will greatly enhance provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities in the local authority area. “Our team has proven experience in delivering major projects in sensitive environments and we’re looking forward to delivering a new facility of the highest quality.” The contract was procured through the North West Construction Hub framework. The architect for the scheme is Halliday Meecham and the quantity surveyor is Currie & Brown. Other professionals involved in the project include construction design and management adviser David Trowler Associates, mechanical, electrical and plumbing consultancy Davies Partnership and structural engineer Sutcliffe. Lisa Hodgkison, headteacher at Springfield School, said: “We are delighted to have MC Construction working alongside us to build this much-needed expansion for Springfield. “They have made a fantastic start and are extremely keen to work with us to ensure our school day is unaffected. They will also be educating our young people on each stage of the build project, to keep them involved in the process. “The expansion will enable us to provide education and support for more children and families within our immediate locality, where we know there is such great demand for specialist places.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

MP Rishi Sunak took part in a special ground-breaking ceremony at the site of a new multi-million pound primary school in Northallerton. Mr Sunak, who is the MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire, joined the milestone occasion which signalled the start of construction at the Alvertune Road site. Also in attendance were representatives from North Yorkshire Council, the Dales Academies Trust and the contractors, Hobson & Porter. The school, which academy leaders have promised will be a “flagship of excellence”, will be run by the Dales Academies Trust and will be based in the northern part of Northallerton, where a major new housing development is being built. The Dales Academies Trust was selected as the sponsor for the school following a competitive process, which attracted interest from several trusts. The trust has announced the new educational establishment will be called Oakbridge Church of England Primary School and will begin welcoming its first pupils in September next year. The 2024 opening date gives certainty to the availability of school places in a part of North Yorkshire where housing growth is expected to increase the population. A phased opening will start with reception children in 2024, expanding to the full cohort over seven years. North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for education, learning and skills, Cllr Annabel Wilkinson, said: “We were delighted to welcome the MP for Richmond Rishi Sunak and are so pleased that work has begun at the new school site. “This demonstrates the council’s commitment to making sure there are the right number of school places, which allows children to be educated in their local communities. “We continue to provide children and young people across North Yorkshire with the best learning environments, enabling all our leaners to thrive. We believe Oakbridge Church of England Primary School is going to be a tremendous asset for the community.” Speaking about his visit, Mr Sunak said: “It was great to see work under way on a very important multi-million-pound investment in education in Northallerton. “This is a vital element of the North Northallerton development project, part of making sure the new housing has the appropriate infrastructure in place to support the families that will be moving here.” The school’s location is close to the new link road which spans the site earmarked for housing, ensuring access for pupils, staff and other members of the public is convenient. Nikkie Godbold, director of primary for Dales Academies Trust and executive headteacher of the new school, said: “We considered at length the naming of the school. Ultimately, we were inspired by an oak tree in the vicinity of the development and the new bridge at the other end of the road on which the school is situated.” Richard Hunter, managing director at Hobson & Porter, which has been awarded the contract to build the school, said: “Starting work on this new school is an exciting moment for everyone involved with this project. “There’s no doubt that once it’s complete, this school will become a hugely valuable part of the local community.” The site was acquired through a planning condition agreed with a housebuilder developing land nearby and Oakbridge Primary itself will account for investment of more than £7 million when complete. During his visit, the Prime Minister also took time out to see North Yorkshire Council’s Multiply team in action. A series of ‘fun on a budget’ workshops were held for families at the campus in Northallerton. Free activities were held to help with budgeting tips, ideas for free days out and how to enjoy the summer holidays with children while sticking to a budget. The Multiply scheme is an adult numeracy programme which has been allocated £2.6 million to be spent in North Yorkshire through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund up to March 2025. The overall objective of the Multiply programme is to increase the levels of numeracy for adults across the country. Meanwhile, the Multiply team works with community groups and individuals aged 19 and over who would like to feel more confident with maths in everyday life. Anyone interested in finding out more about the courses on offer can email multiplyteam@northyorks.gov.uk Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

Net Zero Panels – launching as part of the Premier Modular Group – is driven to minimise construction’s embodied carbon through panelised solutions. Joining the Premier Group alongside Net Zero Buildings (NZB) – which focuses on delivering buildings that are net zero in operation – Net Zero Panels enables a holistic approach to sustainability, helping clients to ensure compliance, reduce embodied carbon. Net Zero Panels will support several sectors – particularly education – as it continues to help clients gain traction towards optimal use of offsite components via a ‘kit-of-parts’. What is panelised construction? Panelised construction can be either structural – a whole building comprising of internal and external load-bearing walls, floor cassettes and a number of structural roof options – or a wrap, where external walls and a roof ‘wrap’ around a concrete or steel-framed building. To meet growing demand for panelised solutions, Premier Modular Group, the market leader in offsite construction – for capacity and capability – has launched a new division: Net Zero Panels (NZP). “NZP is designed to strike a balance between compliance and carbon reduction,” explains Dan Allison, director, NZP. “Compliance is at the heart of the approach, and we ensure extensive acoustic and structural fire testing is built into every system – along with carbon assessments – so we’re best placed to advise on the best materials for your project and their embodied carbon impact. “Using a Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) approach, with NZP, buildings can be configured from a pre-defined kit-of-parts – offering the simplicity of structured panels with all the advantages of flat-packed, volumetric building.” Designing for purpose “NZP is an integrator and distributor, which innovated X-Guard panels,” says David Harris, managing director, Premier Modular Group. “X-Guard panels are made of either timber or light-gauge steel structural elements, but we also use other materials in our kit of parts, such as glulam, hot rolled steel, modified gypsum fibreboard and precast concrete. It’s a question of what’s fit for purpose for your individual building, and it can be provided in one package. “The business has taken off so well that it’s worthy of its own division as an integral part of our group. NZP has all the agility of a start-up with all the financial stability, capacity and ESG credentials you’d expect from a long-established company.” The Department for Education and other public procurement frameworks help schools prioritise the use modern methods of construction for new buildings, which is increasing their prevalence. NZP is taking advantage of this and has already delivered the kit of parts for DfE’s first carbon pathfinder scheme at Treetops Free School in Grays in Essex. Treetops Free School – the UK’s first net zero carbon pathfinder The DfE commissioned the 3,293m2 extension to Treetops School as the government’s first zero carbon pathfinder project, which completed in August 2022.  Zero carbon pathfinder projects follow a ten-point plan to achieve net zero carbon in operational energy and dramatically reduce embodied energy in their construction. NZP delivered the structural solution for Treetops, which provides full-time education and therapeutic behavioural support for 3-16 year-old pupils with special educational needs (SEN). Treetops’ building solution comprised of a hybrid, structural timber panel system with a highly insulated envelope. The NZP ‘kit-of-parts’ system included floors, external and internal walls, the primary frame for the Hall and the panelised roof solution to the entire building. “This was all made possible by our design, engineering, production, manufacturing and installation capabilities, as well as the transparent ways we collaborate with the school, main contractor and our supply chain,” says Dan Allison. “Treetops shows how green the schools of the future will be because of its net zero considerations, and it can be reconfigured as needs change.” Lawrence Sheriff School in Rugby, Warwickshire – less school more panels A long-established school – Lawrence Sheriff in Rugby, Warwickshire – needed a new facility to expand teaching capacity. It required new science classrooms and a studio, as well as a modern dining room. Completed in December 2021, the 346m2 extension needed to complement and integrate seamlessly with the heritage building and adhere to best practice in net zero construction. In this project, the main contractor built a primary hot-rolled steel frame, and NZP wrapped the structure with its highly insulated timber panel system. NZP provided a structural, closed-panel system with a factory-fitted drylined service zone and clad with cedar and airtight brick facades onsite. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

The new facility has been hailed by Dundee City Council as ‘the most important investment in the city’s future’ Jenny Gilruth MSP, Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, yesterday witnessed construction work beginning on an integrated educational and community facility for the east end of Dundee. Pupils joined Ms Gilruth in making symbolic footprints in wet concrete to create a mark that will become a feature at the new £100m East End Community Campus. Designed by Holmes Miller for Dundee City Council, with Robertson Construction as the main contractor, the new facility will cater for around 1800 pupils from Braeview Academy and Craigie High School and their teachers, staff, and the wider community. Local residents, pupils, staff and community organisations were consulted extensively on the design of the campus. Their input led to various changes in the design, including how departments are arranged, and the inclusion of facilities that will ensure the building can be used 365 days a year. Offering an optimum environment for learning and attainment, the new 19,500m2 campus will include a variety of teaching and informal meeting spaces, a central learning plaza, presentation spaces and specialist Additional Support Needs (ASN) areas. The design also incorporates flexible spaces such as a ‘Hellerup’ staircase where pupils and staff can relax, socialise and collaborate. Facilities that the wider community can use will include a music and drama centre, café, library, floodlit all weather pitches, a fitness suite and a dance studio. The indoor accommodation will be arranged around a central courtyard that provides an outdoor civic space for community and school events, break out and relaxation. The community campus, which is due to open in time for the new academic year in August 2025, will be built to the international ‘Passivhaus’ sustainable energy use standard, using responsibly sourced materials. Joanne Hemmings, Associate at Holmes Miller, explained: “To achieve the rigorous Passivhaus standard, we have placed sustainability right at the heart of the design, which will ensure low energy consumption both during the construction phase and throughout the life of the building. “The campus will be a compact, highly insulated building with low energy hybrid ventilation, substantial solar panels and a heating system that’s powered by air source heat pumps. A new link to a sustainable cycle and pedestrian route, plus several cycle storage facilities, will encourage active travel to and from the campus. “We’ve really enjoyed collaborating with local partners on this project, which we know will help create positive outcomes for pupils, the environment and the wider community.” Dundee City Council’s children and families convener Councillor Stewart Hunter said: “The East End Campus will be more than a school, it will be a focus for the whole community and will be accessible and inclusive. This campus will help improve the future prospects of young people while assisting the community to thrive. “It is the most important investment in the city’s future and delivery of the campus will allow us to improve educational and community facilities to help tackle significant challenges of poverty. “This is a goldenopportunity to transform educational and community facilities and replace two outdated buildings with a campus fit for the years ahead. “The design of the campus has seen pupils playing an important role on the project board. The campus will provide an inspiring educational environment carefully designed to support learning developments in the longer term.” Elliot Robertson, Chief Executive Officer, Robertson Group, said: “As the first Passivhaus building in its portfolio, East End Community Campus illustrates Dundee City Council’s commitment to its communities, to education attainment and addressing climate change. “Having been a partner of choice for the Council for several years, we look forward to working with them to deliver this high-quality multi-use facility, that will cater for a centre for music and drama, sports facilities and city-wide education. This new school built to Passivhaus standard, will significantly cut emissions to the built environment, and delivers outstanding levels of energy efficiency, reducing ongoing annual operational energy costs. Throughout the build we will be working with local contractors and suppliers, wherever possible, and seeking to improve employability skills within the community through an on-site skills academy.” Design team: Holmes Miller, Atelier Ten, Sussed Sustainability, Goodson Associates, Sterry-Walters Partnership,Deanestor Main Contractor: Robertson Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals