Bouygues UK has formally handed over the keys to the newly-completed sbarc|spark building at Cardiff University, which was officially opened on St David’s Day, 1st March 2022. The new building is the largest innovation facility of its kind in Wales, featuring 12,000m sq of floor space across six storeys, with commercial units and lab spaces for spinouts and start-ups.  Designed by Hawkins\Brown architects, the building houses an eye-catching Oculus staircase – the first of its kind in the UK – which was designed and produced by Taunton Fabrications. The sbarc|spark build began in 2018 and is the first building to be completed on the University’s Cardiff Innovation Campus. Bouygues UK remains on site at the Translational Research Hub (TRH) – a building situated adjacent to sbarc|spark – which will house two world-leading scientific research establishments; the Institute for Compound Semiconductors and Cardiff Catalysis Institute. TRH is due for completion in the middle of the year.  Featuring collaborative working spaces, auditorium and RemakerSpace, sbarc|spark locates 400 experts from 12 social science research groups alongside Cardiff Innovations@sbarc – the University’s home for partnerships. It will eventually be home to 800 people, providing an innovative space to nurture and grow tomorrow’s big ideas, with dedicated space for student entrepreneurs and start-ups. The building also benefits the local community as the ground floor will be a public open space with a café and a flexible auditorium for TEDx-style events.  Bouygues UK Operations Director for Wales, Stephen Davies, said: “Our team have achieved a major milestone in handing over the sbarc|spark building for our valued client Cardiff University. Our team and trusted supply chain partners have worked tirelessly to deliver a facility of the highest quality and it is so rewarding for them to finally see the smiling faces of the client and their tenants as they start to occupy the building.  “We would like to thank Cardiff University, Gleeds and all our partners on the project in achieving the successful handover of the sbarc|spark building and look forward to their continued support as we drive towards completion of the full facility.  “We are extremely proud of the teams’ commitment to social value and the community which include 471 hours of staff time donated to education and community support and 5,957 weeks of employment delivered for apprentices, trainees, graduates and previously unemployed people. In addition, more than 70% of site contractors and labour was sourced locally during the build, bringing economic benefits to Wales.” Professor Damian Walford Davies, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, has overseen the delivery of the centre. He said of the opening: “We celebrate the opening of sbarc|spark confident that the vision that inspired it – that of a community of Cardiff University researchers with social and economic wellbeing as their subject and goal, co-located with external partners with innovation in their souls in a building designed to eliminate barriers – will now be lived reality.”

Award-winning UK construction, refurbishment and fit out company, Gilbert-Ash, has been appointed main contractor on a £22 million project to develop a building for the performing arts at Brighton College. Gilbert-Ash is set to move on site on February 21 with the scope of works including the demolition of existing buildings and the construction of a 400-seat multifunctional theatre, dance and drama studio. It also includes classrooms for English and Drama and a social space for gatherings. Due to complete in February 2024, it’s the company’s third major project in the East Sussex resort and comes just months after Gilbert-Ash handed over the impressive business school at the University of Brighton. Gilbert-Ash Managing Director, Ray Hutchinson, said the company has a track record of delivering stand-out projects for the performing arts such as the Stirling Prize winning Everyman Theatre in Liverpool. He said: “Gilbert-Ash is very proud to be undertaking such a prestigious project at Brighton College. This is a school steeped in history and academic excellence having recently been awarded the title of School of the Decade by the Sunday Times. “Under the leadership of Headmaster, Richard Cairns, the school has embarked on an ambitious 10-year masterplan of new buildings with the new performing arts building being the final act in that substantial plan. The project has been named Project 175 to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the College. Gilbert -Ash is looking forward to working closely with our client, the design team and our trusted supply chain to bring to life the remarkable plans for this new building.” Due to the historical significance of the college, the new development will take place within a Conservation Area and adjacent to listed buildings. With the college now home to over 1200 pupils and 400 staff, the campus expanded through the years although some areas are now unsuitable for its programmes. The completion of Project 175 will help the college deliver its vision for drama over the next 10 years. Gilbert-Ash attributes its continued success to its ‘As One’ approach and its unique working culture and family environment as an employee-owned company. It continues to complete a broad portfolio of successful construction projects across sectors including arts and culture, workplace, hotels and leisure, education, science and technology, retail, residential and student accommodation.

Midlands-based contractor G F Tomlinson has completed construction works on the new Anker Valley Primary School in Tamworth, Staffordshire. The opening ceremony for the new school took place towards the end of 2021, with MP Christopher Pincher, County Councillor Jonathan Price from Staffordshire County Council, representatives from G F Tomlinson and Head of School Natalie Horlor in attendance, as well as 50 guests. “We are very pleased to see the newly-built Anker Valley Primary School now open, on behalf of our client Entrust for Staffordshire County Council, through their Construction Project framework,” said Chris Flint, managing director of G F Tomlinson. “We have strong experience in educational projects across the Midlands and are delighted to have delivered this brand-new primary school to the Staffordshire region, providing much-needed school places for young children in the local area.” “The school sits within a new residential development in a great location close to the centre of Tamworth, and will provide high quality educational facilities for the growing community here. The opening ceremony was a wonderful way to mark the special occasion, and it was great to see the smiles on the children’s’ faces as they sang for attendees and explored their new school.” The occasion was marked with speeches and a presentation of the school’s journey, as well as a special ceremony awarding 24 pupils with medals made especially for the occasion. The children also put on a singing performance for everyone attending the event, before the school was officially opened by MP Christopher Pincher and County Councillor Jonathan Price. Construction of the £5million, two-storey school was led by G F Tomlinson, on behalf of its client Entrust for Staffordshire County Council and offers 210 places, including 26 nursery spaces. It was built in response to Tamworth’s new housing developments creating an increased need for additional school places in the area. The school is being managed by Fiertè Multi Academy Trust – which currently has seven other schools in the Tamworth and Burton area. “A dream doesn’t become reality through magic, it takes sweat, determination and hard work and so many people have worked tirelessly behind the scenes for almost three years to create this dream. The incredible Anker Valley team, along with the fantastic builders, went above and beyond unpacking deliveries, assembling furniture and getting every room ready for the arrival of our first cohort of children in September 2021,” said Natalie Horlor, Head of School at Anker Valley Primary School. “Everyone has a dream but not everyone can make it happen. As Eleanor Roosevelt said: the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams and at Anker Valley, we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved for helping us to achieve our dream.” This is one of a number of educational schemes that G F Tomlinson is involved with in the West Midlands alongside Entrust, as the Derby-headquartered firm is also constructing Bramshall Meadows First School in Lichfield and Fradley Park Primary School in Uttoxeter for Staffordshire County Council.

Scotland’s five regional hub companies have delivered 151 new schools and nurseries to the value of £2 billion across Scotland. The public-private partnership bodies will come together for the Learning Places Scotland conference on 23rd November at the SEC Glasgow to showcase their success in creating modern learning facilities that will benefit communities for many years to come. The hub companies continue to build on their successful track record with a further £310 million of education projects under construction and £524 million in development. An independent report published this year by economic and social researchers, EKOS Ltd, found that the hub programme has performed well against its objectives, delivering substantial social impacts and community benefits across Scotland. The hub companies have adopted a social value approach to their projects that includes economic impact and sustainability in the communities they serve. Peter Reekie, chief executive of the Scottish Futures Trust that manages the hub Programme, explained: “Since their inception, the five hub companies have worked with local authorities to deliver learning places which provide great environments for young people to thrive.  “All of those involved from the client teams and the hub companies themselves through their design and construction supply chains to the smallest SMEs should be proud of the outcomes they have delivered for the industry and local economies as projects have been successfully delivered, and for communities across Scotland through the buildings they have created.” Jamie Hepburn MSP, Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training will give the keynote address at the conference. The theme of the event is “Scotland’s Learning Estate – Connecting People, Places and Learning”, which aims to support more collaboration around the planning and implementation of new integrated learning environments to improve education and the life chances of children and young people. Scotland’s five regional hub companies are: hub North Scotland hub East Central Scotland hub South East Scotland hub West Scotland hub South West Scotland

Construction works have started on a new primary school in Fradley Park in Lichfield, Staffordshire. Midlands-based contractor G F Tomlinson is leading construction of the school, which will offer 210 primary and 26 nursery places to the local area when complete. “We’re very pleased to be working with framework partner Staffordshire County Council for the construction of this brand-new primary school in Lichfield. We have worked with the Council on a number of construction projects in the past, and are also underway with another school in Uttoxeter,” said Chris Flint, managing director at G F Tomlinson. “It is great to be meeting the demand for more school places in the area. With many new homes coming to the region currently, and more planned for the future, we are delighted to be delivering high-quality, well designed education facilities that are going to serve the local communities here well, with scope for expansion to meet growing needs in the years to come.” The £4.8 million scheme is being delivered through the Staffordshire County Council Framework and is being project managed by Entrust – once finished, the school will be run by the John Taylor Multi Academy Trust. The new, two storey 1FE primary free school will house nine classrooms, a library, catering spaces, indoor sports facilities and an outdoor play area. There will also be a MUGA (multi-use games area) pitch on site to enable a number of sports activities for pupils. The school, which will be completed in July next year in time for the start of term in September 2022, is also proposed to expand to 2FE in the future – taking its capacity up to 420 primary and 52 nursery places in total – to accommodate for further planned housing schemes in the local area. This is one of two school projects that G F Tomlinson has recently started works on – with another primary school in Uttoxeter also underway under the Staffordshire County Council Framework. “It has been great to see work start on site. This new school in Fradley will ensure there are enough school places to cope with current and proposed new housing developments. By designing it in such a way that it can be expanded in future years, it means we are planning ahead and ensuring there is enough capacity to meet any further demand. It will be exciting to see how this new school takes shape over the coming months,” concluded Jonathan Price, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education.

Work has concluded on a multi-phase project to provide space for 90 more pupils at Bleak Hill Primary School in Windle, St Helens. The £2.5 million project began in October 2019 and took place over two phases, with contractor Seddon working throughout the various coronavirus lockdown measures to deliver the works on time. Work was completed earlier this year but due to Covid restrictions, the decision was made to delay the official opening event until the new academic year, once the pupils were back after the summer holidays. The brand-new extension to the main building adds four additional classrooms to the school, alongside 15 car park drop-off spaces for parents. The new classrooms allow the school to accommodate 90 pupils in total, helping to meet local demand for primary school places. Prior to this, phase one saw the construction of an extension to the school hall to address capacity issues, particularly at lunchtimes. Finished in 2020, the new, larger hall can now be converted into an extra multi-function classroom. The space will also be used for before and after-school activities, including a breakfast club for pupils. All enabling works for the project were completed during school holidays, to ensure there was no disruption for children and staff. Bleak Hill pupils complete a one-mile walk each day around the school grounds, so Seddon temporarily extended the playground to avoid interrupting this daily activity. The company also delivered external works, including a new bin storage area and painting new lines on the two football pitches, one of which was outside the scope of work as a goodwill gesture to the school. David Baines, Leader of St Helens Council, said: “Ian Wellens [former head teacher] has served Bleak Hill Primary School and the wider community with distinction and dedication for many years, and he leaves a lasting legacy. His legacy isn’t just the fantastic new classroom block, but it’s the brilliant staff, the school culture, and most important of all its hundreds of young people who have enjoyed a superb education here thanks to him and the whole school family. “Everyone with a connection to the school will miss Mr Wellens very much, but thanks to the foundations he’s laid and the example he’s set, we know the school will continue to go from strength to strength under Mrs Lawrenson and the fantastic staff team.” Councillor Kate Groucutt, Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Business added: “These new classrooms will allow more children to access a quality education at Bleak Hill – one of the top performing schools in the borough. As a council, one of our key priorities is to ensure children and young people have the best possible starts in life, and projects like this – as well as similar improvement works set for Penkford and Ashurst Primary School – are clear proof of our commitment.” John Shannon, divisional director at Seddon, said: Overall, the two extensions allow Bleak Hill Primary School to provide more children from the local area with access to high-quality teaching and learning environments where they can reach the best of their abilities. “It’s been a pleasure to deliver this vital project for the school, especially over the past year, which has been incredibly difficult for everyone. The new facilities will go a long way in helping the community’s young people to thrive for years to come.” Seddon was awarded the two-stage project through the LHC Schools and Community Buildings Framework. Before the first coronavirus lockdown hit in March 2020, Seddon bought all roof tiles, bricks and blocks in bulk to keep the site open and ensure no delay to the construction programme. The company subcontracted bricklaying to David White Construction and the roofing works to Shawcroft.

A total of 210 places are being created at a brand-new primary school in Castle Donington in the heart of a community of new-build homes. The £4.2 million project is being delivered on behalf of housebuilders, Miller Homes, Redrow and Clowes Developments UK. The companies are required to provide a school as part of section 106 conditions, implemented by Leicestershire County Council. Planning was approved in March 2020 with work initially starting in June 2020 but due to the national lockdown amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the programme was delayed. “Here at Redrow, we strive to build more than just houses – we want to create a better way to live. A sense of community is a vital part of choosing your new home, and we’re committed to investing in the local facilities that surround our developments, which is why we’re delighted to be supporting the creation of brand-new primary school in Castle Donington. We expect the development to popular with a lot of families and look forward to supporting the next generation of local children,” commented James Corden, head of commercial at Redrow East Midlands. Miller Homes has employed national contractor, Seddon, to carry out the construction on the new school, which will provide more education options for local families, as well as those looking to settle in Castle Donington. Seddon is building the school on Welston Road at the centre of brand-new communities by Miller Homes, Redrow and Clowes Developments UK, comprising 895 houses. To accommodate the new community, a new catchment area is needed and will be accommodated by the build of the primary school. Designed by Glancy Nicholls Architects, the school will be lined with trees and a high timber fence, allowing for the building to blend in with the local landscape. The school grounds will include a football pitch, soft social area, playground, hard games court and a habitat area. Plans are also in place to install two car charging ports in 24-space car park, acknowledging the increasing use of electric vehicles. The school is just a short distance from the centre of Castle Donington with excellent prospects for high school at Castle Donington College. “Building schools is key if we are to create thriving communities. With new family homes in the area, there is naturally a demand for more school places and this project has meant we can provide high-quality education right in the heart of the community,” added Stuart Fanshaw, business unit director at Seddon. “This will be a fantastically designed and well- placed school with top-class facilities, a beating heart of the neighbourhood. With just a short distance from home to school, this new project will create a true sense of place for residents and pupils.” Work is scheduled to reach completion by July 2022.