Archived decisions

    Hampshire County Council

    Executive Member - Education Item 7

    15 December 2005

    Trosnant Infant and Junior School campus - Leigh Park, Havant

    Trospacc full day-care provision

    Report by the Director of Property, Business and Regulatory Services

     

      How the conclusion in this report fits with the Corporate Strategy

      This scheme will impact on the delivery of all Corporate Aims, focusing most immediately on:

      Aim 1 - maximising life opportunities
      : the proposal to provide a purpose-built full-day care provision will have an immediate benefit for the school and the local community.

      Aim 5 - improving services: all users of the proposed new facilities will benefit from these proposals.

    1

    Summary

       

    1.1

    Since 1990 the County Council has been establishing early years centres (EYCs) across the county to meet the requirements of the strategy under Every Child Matters and the Children Act 2004, to achieve better outcomes for children and families through the delivery of integrated services.

    1.2

    In phase 1 of the children's centre initiative 2004-06, Sure Start funded children's centres had to be located in and serve families in one of the 20% most disadvantaged wards and/or pockets or disadvantage, of which Hampshire has five. The Sure Start Unit at the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) gave a target number of children to reach within these areas by March 2006.

    1.3

    The Trospacc Centre acts as a hub for services for children and families (particularly for children aged 0-19 years with special needs) in the local community. It is based on the Trosnant Infant and Junior Schools site, which is located within one, but will serve two, of Hampshire's 20% most disadvantaged areas.

    1.4

    To meet the designated core offer, early education integrated with full day care must be provided. Proposals have been drawn up for the Trospacc Centre to provide 36 new full day-care places for children aged between three months and five years. Owing to the limited space at the existing centre, a separate building is required on the school campus to deliver the full day-care strand of the core offer.

    1.5

    The Director of Property, Business and Regulatory Services has progressed the design of the proposed additional accommodation and the purpose of this report is to outline the design proposals and seek approval to the attached design project appraisal.

       

    2

    Scope of the Works

       

    2.1

    The proposed new nursery will be located close to the existing Trospacc facility in the northeast corner of the school campus. The building will comprise two main spaces with ancillary accommodation to include quiet room, office, staffroom, multi-functional space, kitchen, laundry, toilets and stores.

       

    2.2

    A new boiler room will also be provided and existing parking arrangements will be revised to provide eight additional spaces (to include accessible).

       

    2.3

    Landscaping works associated with this scheme will include external play area, the replacement of some small trees lost to the building works and some railing and fencing work to provide protection and enclosure for the nursery.

       

    3

    Funding and Timing

    3.1

    The estimated cost of the scheme to provide a new nursery school is £585,000, excluding fees. Sure Start Children's Centre capital of £87,000, excluding fees, and a DfES General Sure Start Grant of £261,000, excluding fees has been allocated to this scheme, both elements have to spent by the end of March 2006 to meet DfES requirements.

    3.2

    Subject to the necessary approvals it is anticipated that work will commence on site during January 2006 and be completed during May 2006.

    4

    4.1

    Procurement

    It is intended to tender this project on a negotiated design and build basis with Gregory of Havant who have successfully undertaken many similar projects for the County Council. The reason for following a negotiated route is primarily to speed up the procurement process so that the spend profile required by the DfES can be met. This course of action was agreed at the November 2005 meeting of the Executive Member for Policy and Resources.

    5

    Consultation with Local Member

    5.1

    Councillors Ann Buckley and Anne Edwards, the local Members for this area, have been consulted on this project appraisal and their comments will be reported to the final meeting.

    Conclusion

     

    This scheme will provide a purpose-built unit offering 36 new full day-care places for children aged between three months and five years within a disadvantaged area of Hampshire.

    Recommendation

    That the Executive Member for Education advises the Executive Member for Policy and Resources that the design project appraisal for the Trospacc scheme to provide a full-day care provision on the Trosnant Infant and Junior School site at an estimated cost of £585,000, excluding fees, be approved.

      Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

      The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

      NB the list excludes:

      1 Published works

      2 Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

        Title Location

        Architect's plans PMIS file

        Building Profile Reports TMH

      Hampshire County Council

    Building Design Project Appraisal

      Executive Member - Policy and Resources

      6 December 2005

      Buildings, Land and Procurement Panel

      7 December 2005

      Executive Member - Education

      15 December 2005

    Project:

    Trosnant Infant and Junior School campus, Leigh Park, Havant

       
     

    Trospacc full day-care provision

       

    Commencement date:

    January 2006

       

    Completion date:

    May 2006

       

    Planned year of start in accordance with Capital Programme:

    2005/06

      Recommendation:

      That the building design project appraisal for the Trosnant Early Years provision

      be approved.

      1 Finance

    Capital Expenditure

    Current Estimate

    £'000

    Capital Programme

    £'000

    Buildings

    #585

    237

    Fees

    88

    36

    Land to be purchased

    _

    _

    Total

    *673

    273

      * The means by which the difference between the Current Estimate and the Capital Programme

        allocation is to be met is shown in the table below.

      # An allocation of £27,750 for furniture and fittings is included within the estimated build cost.

    Financial Provision for Total Scheme

    Buildings

    £'000

    Fees

    £'000

    Total cost

    £'000

    1 From own Resources:

         

    a) Capital Programme (as above)

    237

    36

    273

           

    2 From Other Resources:

         

    a) a) Sure Start (Children's Centre capital)

    b) b) DfES General Sure Start grant

    87

    261

    13

    39

    100

    300

    Total

    585

    88

    673

Building Cost - Net Cost = £1,687 m2

      - Gross Cost = £1,957 m2

Landlord funded work connected with this scheme

There are no landlord funded works associated with this scheme.

Value of land already acquired for this project

      Although the development site could be disposed of in isolation, there is doubt that planning consent for a valuable alternative development could be achieved on traffic grounds and therefore its value may be limited. It would be inappropriate, due to the close proximity of school buildings, as any vehicular access would need to cross a main pupil footpath and the day care facility needs to adjoin the existing Trospacc accommodation.

      Revenue implications

     

    (a)

    Employees

    £'000

    (b)

    Other

    £'000

    (a+b)

    *Net Current

    Expenditure

    £'000

    (c)

    Capital

    Charges

    £'000

    (a+b+c)

    Total Net

    Expenditure

    £'000

    Revenue

    Implications

    Additional+

    /Reductions

    Nil

    Nil

    Nil

    35

    35

    Unit cost (£)

    (e.g. per place)

    -

    -

    -

    -

    -

    % variation to

    Committee's

    budget

    -

         

    -

    Number of

    additional

    Staff (fte)

    -

         

    -

      * The overall level of the revenue budget for funding schools will (from April 2006) be prescribed by central government, and capital projects have no bearing on the level of this budget. Therefore, this proposed project will have no bearing on the overall level of the Children's Services budget, extra costs and savings being met from the same overall schools' funding level.

      Energy costs

      The estimated annual energy consumption for the new accommodation will meet that required by current Building Regulations. It is anticipated that the increase in fuel cost for the school will be in the order of £1,505 per year (£6.00 for each m² of new accommodation). The additional CO² consumption will be 14 tonnes per year.

      2 Details of site and existing infrastructure

        Location/adjoining land and buildings

        Trosnant Infant and Junior Schools are located on a shared site within a residential area of Leigh Park, off Stockheath Lane. Trospacc operates a Children's Centre within part of the Infant School site.

        The existing school buildings are located in a line across the northern half of the site, below a footpath which runs through the school site. There is an area of open space on the northern boundary, with residential properties beyond. The school playing fields are located to the south of the site, with Havant Sixth Form College beyond. Residential properties are located on the western and eastern boundaries.

        Area including comparison with local/national standards

        The total site area of the combined school site is 8.75 acres (3.54 hectares). Whilst there are no DfES site area guidelines for such provision as this, the new building reduces the schools' overall sites below DfES recommended site sizes.

        Access

        Vehicular access is predominantly from Stockheath Lane, with access for grounds maintenance vehicles from Chilcombe Close. Pedestrian access is from both Stockheath Lane and Chilcombe Close and unofficially along the northern boundary where routes have been formed through the hedge line.

        The contractor will access the site from Stockheath Lane and once within the site compound, pupils and staff will be clearly separated from construction traffic which will be escorted through the site as far as the compound. Deliveries and movement of plant will be restricted during the school day to ensure the safety of all those involved.

        Existing buildings and temporary buildings

        The Infant and Junior Schools are of traditional construction and date from the mid 1990s. An extension to the Trospacc facility was added in 2004. These buildings are all considered to be in good condition for their age and type. There are currently no temporary buildings on site and none are required for this scheme.

        Results of trial boreholes

        Ground conditions consist of topsoil on generally firm and soft clay and loose flint gravels (Coombe Deposits) to a depth of between 2.1-3.2m overlying stiff clay (London Clay). The Coombe clay has a low shrinkage potential so the effect of nearby trees on the foundations will need to be considered.

        Foundations are likely to consist of mass concrete strips or pads founded at a depth of between 1-15m.

        Mains services position

        A new mains electrical supply will be provided to serve the new building and the existing Trospacc facility (which will be disconnected from the existing supply), thus allowing the early years electricity to be metered separately from the school.

        Other mains services are considered to be of sufficient capacity to be extended and adapted as required to serve the proposed additional accommodation.

      3 Scope of the Project

        Type of project, layout and facilities provided

        The proposed new building will provide a purpose-built full day care nursery consisting of the following accommodation:

          · two play rooms

          · sleep area

          · multi-functional space

          · quiet room

          · kitchen

          · wc/baby changing room

          · children's toilet

          · staff room

          · office

          · laundry room

          · male/female toilets

          · plant room

          · storage areas

          · buggy store

        Places provided

        This scheme will provide 36 new full day-care places for children aged between three months and five years.

      4 The Proposed Building

        Type of construction, finish and appearance

        The proposed new single-storey building will be of traditional construction in facing brickwork and timber weatherboarding, using bricks to complement the existing buildings on site. Stained timber windows and doors are proposed and a concrete tiled roof, again to complement existing buildings.

        Accessible facilities

        The new accommodation will be fully accessible, the school site itself is naturally flat.

        There are currently two accessible parking spaces on site which are to be relocated as part of this scheme and a further accessible space will be provided.

        An accessible toilet will be provided within the new building.

        Heating and ventilation systems

        An under floor system served by a gas-fired fully-condensing boiler will heat the proposed new building. Mechanical ventilation via local extract fans will be provided within the toilet, kitchen and laundry areas.

        Fire risk assessment

        In consultation with the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, a fire risk assessment concludes that this is a low fire risk category building. Therefore a sprinkler system will not be installed.

        Health and safety

        A designer's risk assessment and a design health and safety plan, in accordance with Regulation 15 of the Construction Design and Management Regulations 1994, have been undertaken for the proposed scheme

      5 External Works

        Car parking

        Existing parking arrangements will be revised with two existing accessible spaces relocated and an additional eight spaces provided (to include one further accessible space).

        Landscape proposals

        Landscaping will include external play area, the replacement of five small trees which will be removed to facilitate the new building. Railings and fencing will be erected to provide protection and enclosure for the nursery.

        Situation on site and environmental impact

        The proposed new building is situated to the northeast of the school site running parallel to the housing on Chilcombe Crescent. The impact on the adjacent housing has been minimised by the configuration of the building, the eastern boundary being well-screened by existing planting.

      6 Planning

        A detailed planning application was submitted during October 2005.

      7 Building management

        Existing arrangements will apply to cleaning, catering, local management and maintenance arrangements.

      8 Furniture and equipment

        There is an allocation of £27,750 included within the estimated build cost.

      9 Professional resources

        Architectural Services } Masser Architects

        Quantity Surveying } Selway Joyce

        Electrical and } Ugbana Oyet

        Mechanical Engineering } Gary Jones Associates

        Structural Engineering } WSP

      10 Consultations

        The following have been consulted during the development of the project: Headteacher and Governors of the school, Education Department, Children's Services Department, Environment Department, Access Officer, local County Councillor.

        I/PB&R/Committee/ExecutiveMemberEducation/2005/December/Trosnant