36 External Works & Landscaping
Astudio Completes Innovative Redevelopment of Royal Greenwich Trust School • Reuse of the existing landscape has increased school’s capacity from 600 to 950 students while preserving original heritage and identity • Redevelopment delivered around fully operational school and with minimal delays following onset of COVID-19 pandemic Award-winning architectural practice astudio is pleased to announce the completion of the stateof-the-art redevelopment of Royal Greenwich Trust School. The project has increased the capacity of the school and its ability to deliver a broader curriculum, while retaining the specialist construction and engineering infrastructure of the former Greenwich University Technical College. astudio was able to deliver the redevelopment in partnership with Willmott Dixon around the fully operational school over the four-year project period from feasibility study to opening the doors. Furthermore, and in close collaboration with the contractors, Willmott Dixon, the project team were able to ensure the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a delay of only two months by reworking the whole site to accommodate social distancing, ‘working bubbles’, and a one-way system. In addition, all meetings were held via videoconferencing platforms to limit the number of people onsite, while temperature checks were administered on entry to the site for those who could not work remotely. The redevelopment, which delivered 3485m² of new purpose-built accommodation, has expanded the capacity of the school from 600 students (aged 14-19yrs) to a Secondary School for 950 pupils. This expansion includes developer-update.co.uk
200 sixth form spaces, helping to alleviate pressure on a borough in need of greater places for pupils. The £15.6m expansion of the Royal Greenwich Trust School was funded by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, which has overseen the works throughout the project. The Greenwich project prioritised an ethos of good design informing education, empowering students to thrive in their learning environment and allowing the school to develop its partnership with the local community. In delivering this ambitious project, astudio drew on its work with St. Paul’s Way Trust School, which was recognised by Ofsted in helping the school move from special measures to Ofsted outstanding grading within two years of completion in 2010. At Greenwich, astudio was able to draw on its expertise in creating educational spaces that reflect the history and ethos of an institution, while also accommodating new teaching methods and modern demands. To maximise space available on a relatively restrictive site, the new sports hall and lecture theatre were constructed on stilts, creating valuable external space underneath them. These two new halls, as well as new classrooms, are connected to the existing buildings by the quadrupleheight rectangular atrium, providing an environment flooded with natural light at the heart of the school.
