New analysis by the Local Government Association estimates that it will cost £12 billion to create sufficient places for the 900,000 extra pupils expected to start school in the next decade.
Combine this with the recent doubling of the 15 hours free childcare (up to 30) scheme set to roll out this September, a greater number of schools are also volunteering to take on nursery children thus pushing the requirement for more practical space and new or updated buildings…
According to Nursery World Magazine “Schools have turned to innovative solutions to cope with demands on space. They include a primary school in Northumberland that has bought and converted a double decker bus into classroom, after running out of space in the school building, with toilets and cupboards converted into teaching spaces.”
For those Schools who need something a little more substantial however, perhaps a new building or extension is in order?!
But alas! The traditional method of creating new or extending existing buildings (with bricks and mortar) is costly, time-consuming and… well.. messy.
Schools and nurseries are a hotbed of activity, filled with bright young things which don’t quite care for their school to be turned into a 12 month long building site.
Thankfully, for many of us, technology has allowed the construction industry to smarten up it’s act. Partly fueled by the wanton admiration of the Scandinavian folks and their “Vorsprung Durch Technik” approach to their buildings. Flat-pack is not limited to the stores of IKEA.. oh but building techniques of precision engineered laminated timbers are now pretty commonplace, and it’s easy to see why.
This new style of building is designed and constructed in a factory, not on a building site, and the components are engineered, not ‘built’.
Moving more into the realms of ‘manufacturing’ than ‘construction’, Modular or Outdoor buildings for schools are now created in small segments or ‘cassettes’ which come together to form the whole on site.
Exactly like IKEA.
What’s more, at roughly £1,000-1,2000.00 per m2, a modular or prefabricated educational building or classroom may be much more affordable than a portakabin or a traditional building.
Win-Win!
So if you, or a school you know is struggling with space, considerate of budget and is looking for a fast, efficient installation, please do let them know – the future is here. All you need to do, is design it.
(And call us, we’ll design it with you!!)
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