Morgan Sindall has built three new school buildings in Essex using a net zero MMC approach
Morgan Sindall has delivered three new schools buildings for Essex County Council using modular offsite solutions. These upgrades were awarded to Morgan Sindall by the council under the ECF2 Framework, costing a grand total of £9.5 million.
The three new school buildings are:
- Clacton County High School in Clacton-on-Sea
- Colne Community School & College in Brightlingsea, Colchester
- Sweyne Park School in Rayleigh
The new school buildings in Essex are made up of prefabricated modular units manufactured by Eco Modular Buildings. This speeded up the whole process whilst ensuring that quality was high and disruption to live schools sites was minimal.
The modern methods of construction (MMC) approach implemented by Morgan Sindall meant that the new school buildings in Essex could achieve Net Zero Carbon in operation, a first for the county.
Clacton County High School
A £3.5 million expansion project was completed at Clacton County High School in Clacton-on-Sea on 15th December.
This includes construction of a brand-new standalone teaching block with 10 general teaching classrooms, a plant room, and a four-court sports hall. The extension means that Clacton County High School can now offer more spaces for years seven-11 – up from 1,695 permanent places to 1,800.
Although the other new school buildings in Essex were entirely modular, this one was an exception in that it wasn’t. Instead, a hybrid approach was utilised: modular class bases were combined with a traditional steel frame. It was necessary to build in this way to achieve the necessary spans for the hall. The practice also illustrates how the two methods, traditional and modular, can be effectively used together.
Colne Community School & College
The brand new £4 million teaching block at Colne Community School & College in Brightlingsea, Colchester was completed on 14th December. The development includes eight general teaching classrooms, two resistant material technology rooms, two food technology rooms, a seminar room and a plant room.
Sweyne Park School
A £2 million standalone teaching block has provided an extra 150 places at the Sweyne Park School in Rayleigh. Handed over on 1st September, the extension provides six general teaching rooms, a WC, staff rooms and special provisions and classroom enhancements to support hearing impaired pupils. External areas have also been remodelled to provide access to the adjacent 57-acre Sweyne Park.
‘An exciting new approach to growing our schools in order to meet a rapidly increasing pupil population’
Managing director for Morgan Sindall Construction’s East region, Peter Whitmore, said:
“These three projects represent an exciting new approach to growing our schools in order to meet a rapidly increasing pupil population while simultaneously achieving a very high standard of sustainability, efficiency and quality.
“With the government’s net zero target shining a spotlight on the importance of low carbon developments, these projects are a great showcase of how to design, construct and manage building projects with significantly reduced levels of carbon emissions. Thanks to the success of this approach, Essex County Council has been able to meet its impressive net zero in operation goal.
“We worked closely with a number of key stakeholders, including Essex County Council and the school’s staff, to ensure that the new buildings would be ideal for the task at hand. This even included taking one of the head teachers on a visit to the modular factory to explain the design and the process. We’re delighted that the schools have now been delivered and that they’re having a really positive impact on the growing communities in which they’re based.”
‘These projects are a great example of what can be achieved when sustainable, modular technologies are used together in a clever, joined up manner’
Stuart Beales, sales and marketing director at Eco Modular Buildings, added:
“These projects are a great example of what can be achieved when sustainable, modular technologies are used together in a clever, joined up manner. Thanks to this approach, the school’s all have a number of energy efficient, carbon-reducing advantages built into the very fabric of the classrooms and corridors.
“These advantages range from solar panels, air source heat pumps and low energy ventilation to metering systems that gather data on energy usage in order to continually improve how the school operates. When combined with the superior insulation and air tightness levels we’ve achieved and the reliability of the offsite manufacturing methods, this will all enable the schools to generate as much power as they will require.
“Achieving net zero in operation not only requires a close attention to detail when it comes to designing, manufacturing and constructing new school buildings, as it’s also important that we monitor and regulate the sites once the pupils and staff have moved in. We’ll therefore be conducting regular evaluations that assess both the data that’s been gathered as well as the user experience.”
Reducing carbon emissions whilst helping schools to save money for the things that really matter
Cllr Tony Ball, Essex County Council cabinet member for education excellence, lifelong learning and employability, said:
“Using the Modern Methods of Construction approach on these three projects has enabled us to successfully deliver new teaching space for schools whilst at the same time helping us deliver on our ambitions to tackle climate change and work towards making Essex carbon neutral, as set out in the Essex Climate Action Commission report.
“These projects play a part in reducing carbon emissions caused by school buildings, at the same time creating a high-quality, bright, fresh, and comfortable learning environment for children. Building this way also leaves schools with more money to spend on educating children rather than paying bills and maintenance.”
