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£3m to £4.99M
Sited in Greenbelt land
This project consolidates the existing teaching accommodation by creating a new centralised classroom and dining facility for South Staffordshire College’s land-based curriculum at Rodbaston Campus. The facility creates a landmark which provides the social focus for the campus and promotes South Staffordshire College’s agenda of environmental responsibility within an agricultural context. The building form adopts a contemporary take on an agricultural vernacular and sits comfortably within the Green Belt land. A strict funding arrangement required the building to be BREEAM Excellent, and be open within 18 months, adding to the complexity. Key Facts: -refurbishment of existing buildings -teaching and social facility forming the key focus for the Rodbaston Campus -students with disabilities and learning difficulties have been re-located into this facility to place them firmly at the heart of the College -SFA bid funding with restricted programme -BREEAM Excellent -rural site in Green Belt -enhanced landscape scheme that creates an outdoor learning environment and wildlife habitat Following our detailed feasibility study we engaged with the planning authority early and with our experience of fast track construction and delivering BREEAM Excellent buildings we were able to resolve design challenges promply in the process. Fast track construction and a mixed mode building services strategy were the primary design drivers for the scheme, establishing these strategies from the outset meant economy and flexibility was built into the scheme. They enabled an adaptable layout and the integration of renewable technology to establish the infrastructure to create the key social and teaching spaces and an early watertight building.