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SEPTEMBER 08 - PASSIVELY MINIMISING DISRUPTION WHEN TAKING SCHOOL INTO 21ST CENTURY

Restructuring of education in Northampton has given pupils at Thomas Becket Catholic School state of art facilities that harness sustainable solutions to provide a comfortable learning environment.

The original 1950s school for 780 pupils has become a comprehensive, catering for 1150 pupils initially in temporary classroom units. The new £11.8m remodelling and extension, carried out whilst the original buildings were still in use, was completed three months ahead of schedule, and includes Passivent natural ventilation throughout.

The school now includes a new teaching block for English, a two-storey pavilion for design and technology, new dining hall, library, music suites and a sports hall that has doubled in size, all ventilated using passive stack technology. The system harnesses natural air movement principles of convection in which warm air rises: some 34 Passivent Aircool ventilator units in the walls draw fresh air into the classrooms, with the ‘used’ internal air rising to be exhausted through the roof via 10 Passivent Airstract high capacity terminals. The ventilation thereby provides effective, silent and draught-free background ventilation in line with DfES guidelines, ensuring pupils and teachers are not distracted by noisy fans, and the internal environment remains fresh optimising learning and concentration.

The Passivent ventilation was just one element of modern design and materials included in the new building. Facades feature cedar cladding with the roof and windows being of aluminium. Tom Lyons, partner at GSS Architecture responsible for the project, commented, “What we have effectively done is provide a brand new school. The school now has facilities that are second to none.

“The project was in a live teaching environment so work has to minimise disruption and it was essential all services including lighting and ventilation were kept operable whilst the building work was carried out. The simplicity of the Passivent system was a significant factor in achieving that objective.”

Passivent is part of the Building Product Design Group and is the UK’s leading designer and supplier of natural ventilation systems for both domestic and commercial applications. The company is a founder member of the NatVent EC-EU-funded project co-ordinated by the Building Research establishment to develop practical natural ventilation solutions for the commercial sector, and has also contributed to the BISRIA Guide BG2/2005 Wind Driven Natural Ventilation Systems, as well as being a member of the DfES steering committee on natural ventilation guidance for schools, Building Bulletin 101.

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