Passmores Secondary School England : Architecture

13 Nov 2009 Jestico + Whiles secure consent for Passmores Secondary School Jestico + Whiles, with contractors Willmott Dixon, have secured planning consent for a new £23m building for Passmores School and Technology College in Harlow, Essex. The school, for Essex County Council, will accommodate 1200 students, in six learning areas. The two-storey radial design, conceived in response to the ethos of the school, has a gathering place at its heart. It will provide an excellent and flexible learning environment for the future. The context of Harlow, and of landscape-driven town planning, has also strongly informed the design concept, and the scheme has been well-received by the Essex Design Review Panel. The naturally-ventilated design also uses biomass boilers as part of its heat source. Clad predominantly in timber, it also incorporates a brown roof and night-time cooling. It will achieve at least a BREEAM ‘Very Good’. The scheme has also classed by the Essex Design Initiative (EDI) as an ‘Exemplar’ project. This is the first project produced with Essex County Council funding that has been awarded in this way since the launch of the programme in Summer 2008. The EDI is an initiative in partnership with the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) and Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE). Passmores School has been recognised by Ofsted as Outstanding, by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust as one of the top 100 performing specialist schools, and is in the top 1% of all schools nationally for value added. The scheme is being procured by Essex County Council through the SMARTE EAST contractor’s framework outside of Partnerships for Schools’s BSF and Academies Programmes. It is due to start on site in January and will open in September 2011. “You have produced a stunning design. Thank you for taking the time to get to know us and for delivering something we can all be proud of.” Vic Goddard, Head Teacher. Previously: 9 Mar 2009 Jestico + Whiles selected for Passmores Secondary School Jestico + Whiles, with contractors Willmott Dixon, have won a competition to design a new £23m building for Passmores School and Technology College in Harlow, Essex. The bid, through the Smarte East contractor’s framework, included a design competition. Essex Council considered the bid exceptional. The project, which is preceding the wider Essex BSF programme, is to be part of the Essex Design Initiative’s Exemplar project. Passmores has been recognised by Ofsted as Outstanding, by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust as one of the top 100 performing specialist schools, and is in the top 1% of all schools nationally for value added. All of which has been achieved in its existing substandard accommodation. Design work for the new building is already underway, and the new Passmores School and Technology College is due to open on its new site in September 2011. Passmores Secondary School images / information from Jestico + Whiles 090309