Fulham Cross Girls’ School

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Fulham Cross Girls’ School

London Borough of Fulham

Project Details

Client

Department of Education

Contractor

Morgan Sindall

Value

£7.5m

Contract Period

80 weeks

Project Summary

At Fulham Cross Girls’ School, the works comprised the demolition of an old 1970’s science block and delivery of a state-of-the-art science building and gymnasium with bespoke science labs, staff rooms, offices and a double-height gym.  The new steel frame building with precast concrete planks on the first floor and roof and external brick and clad facade provides 5 new laboratories, preparation room, sports hall, changing rooms, toilets and staff room. The building includes PV panels and attenuation tank.

The main gym complements the all-weather outdoor facilities with associated changing rooms, storage facilities and offices, and capacity for a variety of indoor sports including hockey, netball, dance, and rowing machine activity.

Fulham Cross Girls’ School new block was handed over successfully on budget in March 2020, safely and without delay following the government guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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“We are proud to be working closely with the Department for Education on both Fulham Cross Girls’ School and Fulham College Boys’ School on this series of important projects, helping to reshape the local area into a hub of excellence for STEM subjects.”

“Managing the handover of the project during the Covid-19 outbreak whilst still maintaining excellent communication and quality standards was impressive. We have felt like we have had a clear picture and understanding of what the project would look like from an early design stage and that has carried the whole way through to completion on site. The team delivered the project on time despite various changes in dates and the circumstances.”

“Day to day contact has been exceptional. It’s honest and upfront. What Morgan Sindall say they will do they do. Relationship between the school and the site team is fantastic and has been really successful. I can only thank you on behalf of the school for the absolute professionalism of you all and the appreciation for you always going the extra mile.”

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Project Competencies

Fair

Fair Payment Charter

Sustainable

Sustainable Development Charter

  • 97% waste diverted from landfill

Safe

Health & Safety Charter

  • Zero RIDDORs
  • CCS Score 43

Legacy

Legacy Charter

  • 14 apprenticeships, 6 of which were new jobs created
  • 7 work experience placements
  • 272 Trainee weeks
  • Schools engagement: 361 pupils

Aftercare

Handover & Aftercare Contractor Promise

Community Engagement

Career Opportunities

  • 14 apprenticeships, 6 of which were new jobs created
  • 7 work experience placements
  • Women in Construction Day held at Fulham Cross Girls’ School
  • Numerous career events and interview preparation days for students
  • Enhanced and worked closely with local agencies to achieve ESP targets

Outreach Programmes

  • Time capsule and summer barbeque joint activities held at the school
  • Morgan Sindall assisted with a ‘Fish and Chips Supper’ at a neighbouring elderly care home
  • Morgan Sindall supported the local charity Fulham Good Neighbours including the renovation of the charity’s garden in their HQ, sponsoring their AGM and decorating a local beneficiary’s stairway. They also introduced them to the school enhancing the profile of both.
  • Developed relationships with local suppliers and shop including a venture with a local cafe to encourage people to visit with a voucher awards scheme and a local gardening store was used for the site entrance flowers.

Key Challenges

The project saw the use of temporary modular classrooms to house students away from the works in order to minimise disruption as much as possible to the overall learning environment.

As of March 2020 and amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Fulham Cross Girls’ School new block was handed over successfully on budget and safely following the government guidelines. Last minute programme changes were made to suit the school amidst the COVID-19 outbreak.  Morgan Sindall utilised their labour to help move the school in/out for handover 2-weeks early.

The school remained fully operational throughout the works which required Morgan Sindall to work closely with the school throughout to minimise the impact on teaching and learning. They re-programmed works to avoid noisy works during busy school time/utilising school holidays where possible.

Project Takeaways

Our Success

  • Throughout the project we engaged well with the School, coordinating the works around their requirements to ensure that the safety of pupils was the upmost priority. We included the students at various stages of the project, including time capsules, summer BBQ and work placements, including those with supply chain and consultants.
  • Foundation design: 142 piles at 300mm centres, total length 1,536m. The piles along with the raft slab form this innovative Comdeck solution that eliminates the need for additional pile cap/mat. This was implemented in partnership with Abbey Pynford and benefits include shorter programme, lower costs, safety, environmental and less disruption to the neighbourhood.
  • Offsite manufactured elements: Prefabricated concrete slabs brought in to site enabled the floor and roof to be installed in 3 weeks offering some level of waterproofing. Offsite manufactured stairs could be lifted and used straight away, bringing time and safety benefits.
  • Composite roofing units: Kingspan roof cassette system used to sports hall roof offering fast water-tight time scales for its installation.
  • Fibre gypsum boards: As an alternative to standard plasterboard, Fermacell boards were used in the sports hall that have high durability and impact resistance so good for use in sports hall. As a result, no wet trades were required for finishing. The Fermacell boards are composed of recycled gypsum and paper so are environmentally better as it has no COSHH substances or additional glues. Also provides good fire resistance, acoustic performance and impact strength.

Our Learnings

  • There was a requirement for additional car parking spaces than originally planned; we provided these by changing the logistics for staff parking and providing a better solution for all stakeholders.
  • The revised piling/ground works scheme was reviewed collaboratively with the client through early engagement and the new solution resulting in minimised wastage, noise, dust and material use also including the added benefits for the safety, environment, community and cost/programme gain.

Value Added

  • We enhanced and worked closely with local agencies to achieve the SCF ESP targets. In total 272 training weeks were delivered across the scheme including 14 apprentices, 6 of which were new jobs created and 7 work experience placements.
  • Changing the logistics for staff parking created additional car parking spaces for the school providing a better solution for all stakeholders.

KPI’s & Statistics

ContractGateway 2 Planning Gateway 3 Contract AgreementVariation
Time71.7 weeks63.6 weeks-11.4%

Contact: Alan Smedley, Framework Manager
Email: alan.smedley@morgansindall.com

Sherborne Abbey CE Primary SchoolReading Borough Council – 19 Bennett Road