24 May 2010
Nottingham BSF picked up two awards at
the 2010 Public Private Finance Awards recently – the ‘Best
Education Project’ category and the overall ‘Grand Prix’
prize.
Capita Symonds is providing strategic
partnering, educational, building design and architectural services
on the programme as part of its role in the inspiredspaces
consortium led by leading support services and construction company
Carillion. The consortium is working with the City Council and
Partnership for Schools as part of the Local Education Partnership
(LEP) which is overseeing the Nottingham BSF programme.
This is what the judges had to say –
Grand Prix
Nottingham City’s Building Schools for the
Future (BSF) project has achieved considerable success in a
relatively short period of time. One week after financial close had
been achieved, construction began on all of the sample projects to
ensure they could be delivered as quickly as possible. The
inspiredspaces Nottingham local education partnership (LEP) –
comprising Carillion, Nottingham City Council and BSFi – developed
the Southwark Primary exemplar project (below - designed by Capita
Symonds) from a blank sheet of paper to financial close in just
nine months. Furthermore, it took just eight months to reach
financial close on the Nottingham Academy project.
Between being chosen as preferred bidder on
the project and reaching financial close, the LEP worked closely
with Nottingham City Council to develop three additional schools.
The LEP delivered guaranteed minimum savings on these additional
projects of £950,000 in capital expenditure, demonstrating
excellent value for money.
As well as being quick to begin construction,
the LEP worked closely with Nottingham City Council to ensure
schools were developed to the highest environmental standards. All
new-build schools are designed to run on bio-diesel combined heat
& power technology, which will enable up to 70% of their energy
requirements to be generated onsite from renewable sources.
The LEP has committed itself to enhancing
pupils’ knowledge of environmental issues, making its
sustainability initiatives available for use as educational
resources wherever possible. This forms an important part of the
Learning Programme established by the LEP, its supply chain and the
council. The programme involves activities tailored to specific
curriculum requirements, including helping young people reduce
their energy consumption.
Developing a close relationship with the
teachers and pupils at schools in Nottingham has also been an
important part of the partnering approach undertaken by the LEP.
Detailed consultations with staff helped the LEP understand how it
could develop diverse teaching spaces that would assist their
delivery of transformational education. Nottingham’s BSF has also
demonstrated considerable flexibility for the future in its design
and delivery of schools. Acoustic sliding walls, multiarrangement
furniture and designing walls that can easily be removed all form
part of the flexible solutions.
Developing a close relationship with the teachers and pupils at schools in Nottingham has... been an important part of the partnering approach undertaken by the LEP
Best Education Project
Nottingham City’s local education partnership
(LEP) has demonstrated vision, excellence and close
partnership.
The LEP will deliver over £300m of capital
investment, focussed on improving the environmental credentials of
the city’s school estate. The ecofriendly designs have included
biodiesel combined heat and power plants for new schools, resulting
in 70% of their energy being generated by renewable sources. The
LEP and council have also worked in close partnership to deliver a
Sustainability Excellence Model, aligning the design work of the
LEP with the council’s environmental objectives.
The LEP and supply chain have also
demonstrated real engagement with pupils at the schools through a
Learning Programme. This sees activities tailored to specific
curriculum requirements delivered to the schools by the LEP and its
suppliers.
To date, the LEP has undertaken £130m of
additional contracted work since financial close, including
development of the UK’s largest academy school. Work has also begun
on delivering Nottingham’s Primary Capital Programme, for example
through making its environmental initiatives available for use as
classroom materials.