NSC 25
July/Aug 19
Project architect KSS says, the internal
environment will be simple, but inspiring
with accent colours to aid way-finding
and providing a professional backdrop
to the teaching and learning, while
maintaining an excellent level of passive
supervision.
The school is housed in one large
horseshoe-shaped two-storey structure,
that required Elland Steel Structures
to fabricate, supply and erect 570t of
steelwork.
Overall the steel frame is one braced
structure, with the majority of the bracing
located in stair and lift cores. There are
also some braced bays, mostly at the end
of the wings, while some areas have been
portalised to avoid having bracing elements
interfering with the structure’s many
windows.
Classrooms are predominantly arranged
in two rows in each of the two wings, with a
central corridor providing access.
“The classrooms vary in size and do
not stack-up in a regular fashion,” says
Kirksaunders Associates Engineer Tim
Dungate. “This doesn’t mean the grid
pattern has to change, but the steel frame
has been designed to support partitions
that don’t necessarily correspond with the
column lines.”
Some important flexibility has also been
added to the school design, as partitions
can be moved, if the classrooms need to be
reconfigured in the future.
The area that connects the two wings
together accommodates the main entrance
and a large double-height space that
serves as the main hall and dining area. A
moveable partition wall allows this large
space to be used as either one or two halls.
The hall features spans of 12m-long and
the design of the moveable partition had to
take into account considerable deflections
because of its length.
As most of the columns in the hall and
entrance areas will be left exposed in the
completed scheme, slender steel members
have been used as they were considered to
be more aesthetically pleasing.
At first floor level, there is a viewing
gallery overlooking the hall, while above,
on the uppermost second-storey, there are
more classrooms positioned above the hall.
VIAT Co-CEO Vic Ashdown comments:
“This is a very exciting project for the Trust
and we are looking forward to welcoming
students to our brand-new school next year.
“We will be extremely fortunate to have
some of the best facilities in the county
which will benefit thousands of students
from across our schools.”
Education
The U-shaped
school will enclose
a courtyard
The soffits and
cellular beams will
be left exposed in
the finished scheme
The steel erection
programme was
completed in 10
weeks
“A steel-framed solution
was chosen for the school
building as it offered the
quickest construction
programme.”
/Fabrication
/Braced_frames#Vertical_bracing
/Concept_design#Concrete_or_steel_cores
/Education_buildings#Design_guidance
/Visually_expressed_structural_forms