Speed of delivery and the ability, as an off-site system, to help attain very high standards of airtightness and energy performance were amongst the factors that have led to B & K Structures being chosen to deliver a major extension to a South London primary school, which is on target to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’.
Holy Trinity Primary School has had its capacity doubled under a contract carried out for the London Borough of Richmond by Apollo Education; with B & K Structures supplying and erecting cross-laminated timber and steel elements to create 11 new classrooms as well as new staff room and other facilities.
While Apollo Education used Shepheard Epstein Hunter as its architect during the delivery stage, London based sustainable design specialist, Architype was involved from the outset of the £4.3 million redevelopment, and was responsible for the original concepts, the re-modeling of the school’s layout, and for the choice of a hybrid timber and steel structure as the design solution.
James Todd of Architype recounts: “The school, which dates from the seventies, is on a tight site and had to remain open throughout the build, so one of the key considerations was to utilise an off-site modular system: offering a fast and quiet erection process. Contractors also recognise the benefit of getting a roof on virtually immediately which enables work to continue away from the outdoor elements.
“For us the use of timber, as a renewable resource was also important, with the cross-laminated timber panels making it straightforward to achieve very good airtightness. This was crucial because we were working to near Passivhaus standards and designing in mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, as well as a network of ground tubes to pre-warm or pre-cool the air coming in.
“The new buildings have been erected as infill to the original cruciform shape, but have been able to integrate the new and the old very effectively so that circulation is logical. The project has been a real success story.”
