Kings Lynn SEN School

 

Background:

An ongoing review of SEN provision led Norfolk County Council to identify a need for its two special schools in Kings Lynn - Alderman Jackson and Ethel Tipple - to be replaced by one new, local, complex needs school.
This project amalgamated the two existing SEN schools in Kings Lynn and was carried out as part of Mansell’s education framework with Norfolk County Council and NPS Property Consultants, replacing the two existing schools with one state-of-the-art school catering for 150 children aged between two to nineteen years, with complex educational needs. It is expected that the new school will provide a model for future state-of-the-art complex needs schools in Norfolk.

The project was completed in two phases to minimise disruption to the pupils. The first phase saw the construction of the first ‘block’, which the pupils were then accommodated in. The existing building was then demolished and a further teaching block and nursery was subsequently constructed on the site of the old building.

Solution:

This project required a holistic approach and Structherm were selected as the supplier due to their ability to offer and supply a complete package, including Fastbuild walls and roof structure.
The teaching facilities are spread across a single-storey building to allow ground level access to the secure external recreational spaces and a Glulam portal frame hall structure was also incorporated into the design of the building.

The rooms needed to be light, airy and practical, and included individual and group areas plus sensory rooms and a hydrotherapy pool. This meant that the roof design required particular attention and resulted in a Glulam structure, incorporating sloping ceilings with integral light wells, which funnel natural daylight into the rooms. The roof structure in the hydrotherapy pool area also required a personal lifting hoist to be incorporated into the design, to allow easy access to the pool.

Exterior Finish:

The exterior of the building required an efficient and costeffective finish to be applied to the Fastbuild structure.
Structherm’s NSC 5 offered many benefits, including fast installation, high thermal efficiency and an extremely high degree of impact resistance - all crucial elements for this particular build.
The finish selected was the Structherm Acrylic Flesscoat Cortina TH Plus Medium product, which achieved a U-value of 0.25 w/m2k and excellent air tightness.

Results:

The school is expected to achieve a BREEAM rating of “Excellent”.