Designed by Sheppard Robson, the £68m scheme is the largest capital project ever undertaken by East Ayrshire Council. It will consolidate five disparate schools into one inclusive campus, creating an intergenerational centre for education for 2,500 students and 300 staff. The project is the largest new school project in Scotland.
Four linked structures will accommodate a secondary school for 1,633 pupils, a 517-pupil primary school, a 119-place early childhood centre for children aged 2 to 4 years, an 80-place supported learning centre, 30 additional places for children with special educational needs, and a sports centre.
Deanestor is fitting out 324 rooms across the 22,000sqm campus, helping to create an outstanding learning environment for children, young people and the wider community. The classrooms are arranged around central atria which create flexible learning spaces for individual, small or large group educational activities.
Deanestor’s contract includes the manufacture and installation of bespoke school furniture. There will be 117 learning walls, 1,800 base and wall storage cabinets, 1,200m of shelving, 1,500m of linear worktops, 100 lockers, benching for the sports centre, adjustable-height tables across the campus to meet DDA requirements, and kitchens for three food technology laboratories, as well as staff kitchenettes and a kitchen for the life skills room.
Commenting on Deanestor’s appointment, John Allan, Project Director at Morrison Construction, said, “Deanestor’s tender was competitive on price and they were able to achieve our programme. They have a good reputation both in the education sector and in Scotland and are a valued member of the Morrison supply chain. Our requirement is for fitted furniture that is robust and built-to-last for this high-quality flagship school campus.”
Ramsay McDonald, Managing Director of Deanestor Scotland, said, “We are delighted to be working on our sixth project for Morrison Construction in the past three years. This latest contract follows a detailed assessment which looked at our financial stability and our skills, track record and technical expertise to deliver a project of this complexity and scale. This is a challenging fit-out project that required intensive design resources to achieve a cost plan that matched the design intent. We are looking forward to contributing to an exemplar teaching and learning environment that will enable every child to reach their full potential.”
Ryan McMonagle, Project Architect at Sheppard Robson said, “The Deanestor team performed really well at the initial design stages with good engagement, a positive and collaborative approach, and a thorough knowledge of the technical requirements for education furniture which has added value to the project.”
The modular learning walls will be manufactured by Deanestor in multiple widths and 20 different configurations and colourways to suit each year group. These will accommodate a combination of features such as central interactive screen, whiteboard doors, integrated teaching desk, built-in bag storage, storage trays, base and wall cupboards, open shelving and sinks.
The architect’s colour strategy for the campus is based on the Scottish landscape and uses hues of blue and green for the fixed furniture.
Deanestor provides high quality contract furniture solutions to construction clients and contractors for healthcare, education, student accommodation, build-to-rent and laboratory projects – both new build and refurbishment. It offers bespoke design services to meet specific project requirements and is responsible for installation to provide a seamless approach for its customers and a single point of contact.
For further information, visit www.deanestor.co.uk/schools, call 01623 420041 or email [email protected].
Image is courtesy of Sheppard Robson