Project: Four primary schools in Exeter

Client: The Governing Bodies of Pinhoe School, St Michael’s School, St Nicholas’ School and St Sidwell’s School

Value: £12.3m

Contract: JCT 1998 with Contractors Design

Duration: 77 weeks per school

The project comprised the concurrent construction of four primary schools in Exeter, built to the latest Department of Education standards and comprising between 12 and 16 classrooms, hall, kitchen, IT suite and administration offices.

The schools were constructed on the former playgrounds, with minimum disruption, whilst the existing schools remained occupied. The existing facilities were then demolished and new playground facilities provided, including sports pitches and viewing areas.

To keep energy use and costs down to a minimum, the classroom ventilation is generally natural, with air conditioning only provided in the IT Suite where the heat load is higher. Natural ventilation is provided by louvers at low level in the external screens and by north-light roof outlets.

Pinhoe School has taken more special measures to maintain its green credentials; as well as areas of sustainable larch external cladding, the school has a green roof planted with a special meadow mixture. The mass of the roof build up helps to keep summer temperatures down and at a stable, comfortable level.

St. Nicholas’ School has a brownfield roof. This was constructed using a sarnafil membrane supporting aquadron recycled rubber layer (old plimsolls), sub-soil hardcore with a crushed brick mixed in; it was then seeded with special meadow mixture with a selection of timber branches added to the biodiversity for insect life.

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