Tag Archives: #schoolextension

Why your educational construction project needs a project manager

Friday, July 15th, 2022

Nothing stays the same for long these days, and so it’s almost inevitable that at some stage, your school accommodation will need to either change or grow (or both!). Perhaps a forthcoming increase in the school roll means that additional classroom space is required, or improved facilities (new science labs or DT rooms, for example) are needed to help deliver the national curriculum.

Of course, you are getting on with the important task of running your school and teaching children, and so appointing an experienced project manager in conjunction with suitably qualified architectural designers at the very infancy of a site development project is key to its success.

PCMS Design is such a firm, and our expertise in this field is broad and deep. There are many ways in which we can add value. At feasibility stage, we can properly assess the potential of your building (against DfE guidance) and make recommendations as to how it can be cost-effectively and practically expanded and changed.

Project Manager site meeting with client and site agent

We will carefully guide you through all of the various stages involved in a construction project.

We understand the planning process, and have strong links with many local authority planning and building control departments. We will handle the procurement of suitable building contractors, the contract administration and detailed project management of the build.

Accurate cost control is obviously vital for public sector projects and this is a major benefit of using a project manager. And with our emphasis on sustainable construction, we will ensure that the build uses the best, most environmentally-friendly materials and has features such as renewable energy generation as standard.

In essence, using a project manager can save you time and money, ensuring successful and stress-free delivery of your school building projects.

Latest Phase Completes at Henlow Academy

Thursday, January 20th, 2022

As part of Central Bedfordshire’s ‘Schools for the Future’ plan Henlow Academy is within the first cluster of Schools to change from a three tier system to a two tier system. This means that Henlow Academy is changing from a Middle to a Secondary School.

Our design for this latest phase of works involved a two storey extension to the existing sports hall and classroom block. The extension was designed to mirror the sports hall with a curved standing seam zinc roof, and sections of the building were rendered to break up the mass of the building. The siting of the extension created a courtyard area which gave the opportunity to explore different finishes, and create social spaces for staff and students.

The extension incorporates four science labs, five classrooms and a lift, giving access to all. Wide corridors and views of the courtyard create light and space, matched with the brightly coloured walls and lockers throughout. All classrooms and specialist teaching rooms are designed to Department for Education Building Bulletin 103.

In the existing building, a dull and drab old gym was converted to a vibrant theatre/dining space with the introduction of four new vertical windows with coloured glass, and two high level horizontal windows. In addition, a retractable tiered seating system was installed along with fold away pocketwall dining hall tables and benches.

Two existing Multi Use Games Areas (MUGAs) were consolidated to make one new space, primarily for hockey use, and this facility can now be hired by the local community.