Education

A MODERN SCHOOL FOR A MODERN COMMUNITY

Seddon has completed a new primary school in Castle Donington, Leicestershire, bringing 210 new school places to the area. Situated in the heart of a newlyconstructed housing development, it represents a key pillar for a brand-new community with a sustainable mindset ingrained into its modern design.

The creation of what would become Foxbridge Primary School was delivered across a 52-week period, with its construction necessitated in Section 106 provisions. As outlined by Leicestershire County Council, the building of the new school was key to the planning approval of the surrounding 895-home development to ensure the housing project extended beyond just housing. The 210 new school places it provides will help meet the demands of the new development, delivered by a tri-consortium of housebuilders – Miller Homes, Redrow and Clowes Developments – has naturally created.

The contractor was appointed for the project by The Scholars Academy Trust on the strength of its comprehensive experience in the education sector and commitment to sustainability, with environmental measures a key component of the project. Seddon, which is in its 125th year of business, has invested heavily in sustainable construction methods and brought to fruition over £70m of educational facilities across the North West and Midlands in the last six years. Previous projects include Phase 1 works for Stockport College, renovating the flat roofing of the University of Derby’s West Wing and constructing the 57,000ft2 Keele Veterinary School over a 70-week period. It also completed a £1.8m refurbishment and extension project for Bolton Sixth Form in its hometown. These projects successfully showcased Seddon’s ability to navigate a myriad of education construction projects on time and to budget, making the contractor an ideal delivery partner for the development’s tri-consortium.

Community-powered project

Plans were drawn up for the single-storey, 1332m² building to be situated on Welsted Road. It would sit nestled within the heart of the new development. Sensitive to what this means for its residents, Seddon, driven by its belief that ‘people make places’, worked closely with the surrounding community during the planning stages.

The key aim was to gain a thorough understanding of the community’s views on the project and to maintain a positive relationship with the neighbouring houses while the project was in development. This approach was continued throughout the 52-week build, with Seddon accommodating feedback from global property and construction consultant, Gleeds, Academy and Leicestershire County Council, on the back of regular site visits.

Acting upon the learnings of consultations and discussions, Seddon executed an adaptable construction model throughout the project to make sure the school became a valuable addition to the new development and the community it is sewing. With close links to a neighbouring high school, Castle Donington College, the new primary school’s importance within the local community and the stepping stone it represents for the community’s next generation, could not be understated.

Designed and delivered

The school was designed by Glancy Nicholls Architects. The single-storey building was designed as a kinked block, with mono-pitch roofs to primary teaching areas with flat roofs connecting these sections. Lined with trees and a high green weldmesh fence, the design allows the building to blend in with the two-fold aesthetics of the local landscape, characterised by green fields and the grey aircraft hangars of the neighbouring East Midlands Airport.

Large windows to classrooms allow for views between internal and external spaces with good passive surveillance around the site to ensure a school-wide approach to health and safety. The windows are a dark grey, chosen to match the cladding, with key opening windows also coloured accordingly. A light grey metallic standing seam was wrapped vertically to both the walls and roof to soften the building’s edges.

To comply with new Building Regulation laws, put in place during the construction phase, plans were also integrated to install two electric car-charging ports in a 24-space car park. These plans were tailored with flexibility, ensuring there was the ability to facilitate more in the future.

Green minded for green fingers

Just like the school it was building was to become, Seddon ensured its operations were green minded. Of the waste produced during the project, 98% was recycled off site, with 85% of subcontractors located within a 30mile radius of Derby to minimise its carbon footprint. To the same end, after the onsite topsoil failed testing, Seddon sought out a local farm for the topsoil to ensure its supply chain was locally sourced. Recycled wood was also repurposed in the structure of the school’s reception and the soft play area.

The school grounds include a football pitch, soft social area, playground, hard games court and a habitat area, all of which encourage socialising and exercise from its pupils, alongside being ideal platforms for further, outside-the-classroom learning. The habitat area, especially, which will be managed by select pupils, will be a valuable source for hands-on learning about nature and responsibilities for the area’s next generation, which greatly echoes the school and contractor’s mutual commitment to the environment. The pupils’ green uniform is a further reflection of this, with the school’s ethos of underlining the importance of outdoor learning, meaning a great deal of emphasis was put in the creation of outdoor spaces the school had to offer.

Mark Barrington, Chief Operating Officer at the Scholars Trust, said that “Seddon is firmly in our legacy” as a result of the project. He said: “From the outset, it was clear that the project team at Seddon had the best interests of the most important stakeholders in this project at heart – the pupils who would be using the school.

“As a trust, this is the first time we have opened a brand-new school, so to be able to draw upon the extensive knowledge of the Seddon staff was vital. Every question was answered quickly and efficiently, and we always felt like our thoughts and opinions were heard and mattered. Throughout every step of the build process, we were kept fully up to speed with progress through regular meetings, both on site and remotely. The local community has responded really positively to the quality of the school design and build, and we are so excited for the future of our school and for the families that will benefit from it.”

Construction of the 10990m² site was completed in summer 2022, with Foxbridge Primary School moving into the property ahead of the new school year. Seddon’s ability to deliver the £4.2m project in time for the new school year represented a major coup for the local community as the wider development nears completion. The school was officially opened by the Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, H.M Mike Kapur OBE, in early October, with parents, local businesses and the press in attendance.  www.seddon.co.uk