Pettit Singleton Associates (PSA) carried out full mechanical and electrical design and supervision services on this £2.5 million major development to consolidate the infants and juniors schools onto one site. The construction of a new wing on the existing school building totalled some 900m2. A key requirement of the brief was for the building to be environmentally friendly with low carbon emissions and to achieve a BREEAM “excellent” rating.
CLIENT: Padiham Primary School
VALUE: £2.5m
LOCATION: Burnley, Lancashire
SERVICES: Mechanical & Electrical Design, BREEAM
CLIENT OBJECTIVES
The client, a large corporate organisation responsible for the school, had several key objectives for this project. Firstly, they wanted to consolidate the infants and juniors schools onto a single site to improve operational efficiency and provide a better learning environment for the students. Secondly, they were committed to improving the environmental performance of their buildings and were targeting a BREEAM “excellent” rating for this development. This would demonstrate their environmental credentials and reduce the school’s ongoing energy costs and carbon footprint.
OUR SOLUTION
To meet the client’s environmental objectives, the PSA design team incorporated several sustainable technologies into the building services:
- Photovoltaic (PV) panels to generate renewable electricity
- Solar hot water (SHW) panels to provide renewable heating
- Ground source heat pumps to efficiently heat and cool the building
- Rainwater collection system to reduce water consumption
These measures, combined with high levels of insulation and energy-efficient lighting and ventilation, enabled the building to achieve its BREEAM “excellent” target.
THE OUTCOME
The completed building has been a great success, both for the client and the local community. The consolidation of the schools onto one site has improved operational efficiency and provided an enhanced learning environment for the students. The sustainable design has also delivered significant environmental benefits, with projected annual savings of 5,400 kWh of gas and 1,026 kg of CO2. The client is delighted with the outcome and the positive impact the new school building has had.
