New teaching facilities at Coundon Court School

Posted: 2 December 2021

Students at Coundon Court School in Coventry are enjoying using their impressive new Modern Languages block and other extension works which were complete in time for the new school year.

The new stand-alone building, designed by ONE Creative environments (ONE), was commissioned by Coventry City Council to support the expansion of Coundon Court School and accommodate the growth in pupil numbers in secondary schools in the area.

The Modern Languages block has a welcoming atmosphere with a double height atrium which maximises natural light and includes 16 classrooms, SEN facilities, offices and group rooms. An extension to the school’s main hall has also been completed as part of these works to facilitate increased pupil numbers for exams and a large exterior canopy will now provide an outdoor dining space that can be enjoyed by students.

A sustainable approach has been taken with the new teaching block incorporating louvres on the façade to assist with night-time cooling, sun shading to the east, south and west facades to prevent the need for interventions such as air conditioning, and photovoltaic panels (PV) on the roof to provide green energy that will be used by the school. Reorganised parking arrangements with a new car park designed by ONE will also ensure a pedestrian friendly school campus is maintained.

ONE was appointed to act as Lead Consultant and Contract Administrator with their inhouse multidisciplinary design team of architects and engineers (civil, structural, electrical and mechanical) to deliver the expansion scheme. The contractor, Interclass, has successfully delivered this design on site and the completed buildings look fantastic.

Cllr Dr Kindy Sandhu, Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, said: “The opening of these new teaching facilities is not just great news for the staff and students here at Coundon Court, it is great news for Coventry, as the young people who study in these classrooms will hopefully go on to take our city forward.

“The lessons they learn here and the sense of pride and responsibility they take in their new facilities will be building blocks for their future. I want to thank everyone for their hard work and efforts that have gone into such a fantastic project”.

Matt Tebbatt, Managing Director at ONE, said: “We have worked on a wide variety of educational projects and we believe the new teaching areas, and the improved use of the outdoor spaces, will make a huge difference for students at Coundon Court.”

“This has been a great project working with Coventry City Council. Our architects and engineers are thrilled to see the facilities in use and being enjoyed.”

Peter Hood, Construction Director at Interclass, added: “We have enjoyed working collaboratively alongside ONE Creative environments and Coventry City Council to handover this fantastic new teaching facility in time for the new academic year. It gives us great pleasure to deliver first-class, modern teaching and learning environments that will benefit students, their families and the local community for years to come.”