Carbon Assessment in Somerton

Carbon assessment approach used at new school in Somerset could influence next generation of school design

25th March 2021

Built environment company BAM has carried out an assessment of the embodied carbon and the operational carbon used in the design and construction of a new primary school in Somerset.

Handing over King Ina School in Somerton, BAM said that its approach would benefit future school designs by giving it a benchmark that can both be revisited at the school itself, and which will help inform the design and construction of future schools.

Embodied carbon has not been considered as a priority in school design and building but the tide is changing and measurement is becoming a priority for the Department for Education.

BAM worked on the school design with Somerset County Council which invested £7.3m to develop their new primary school, accommodating up to 420 pupils and 52 early years children.

Appointed under the Southern Construction Framework (SCF), BAM created 14 classrooms, a nursery, a school hall, a production kitchen, sports pitches, and a multi-use games area.

Embodied carbon covers the materials, transport and the construction process including the efficiency of resources used, such as how much waste was minimised, the amount of water and energy used. 97% of all waste was diverted from landfill, it used a 100% renewable green tariff for electricity supply and during the wet month of August collected 2,000 litres of rainfall used for constructing the blockwork.

The new facilities will have a positive impact on the day-to-day running of the school, as King Ina CofE Academy currently operates from two sites at opposite ends of the town, with pupils and staff having to travel between Etsome Terrace and Kirkham Street on a daily basis.

Note

The target of 600 kgCO2/m2 is derived from the London Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI). This is a network of over 1,000 built environment professionals that are working together to put London and the UK on the path to a zero carbon future. The voluntary group is made up of developers, engineers, housing associations, architects, planners, academics, sustainability professionals, contractors and facilities managers.

The project was completed by BAM Construction Western Region Ltd, part of BAM Construct UK which is part of Royal BAM Group. For over 150 years BAM has been at the forefront of innovation and change in the built environment and are pioneers in digital construction, social value and sustainability. BAM employs some 5000 people in the UK and 20,000 worldwide. It has created some of the UK’s most recognisable buildings. Learn more: https://www.bam.co.uk/