Archived decisions

Hampshire County Council Executive Member for Education 17 May 2007 Liss Junior School Report by the Director of Property, Business and Regulatory Services

Contact: Steve Clow Ext: 7858 e-mail: [email protected]

1	Summary
1.1	Liss Junior School is located at Hillbrow Road in Liss, on the edge of the village. The school was built in 1994, of traditional construction, and shares a 2.6 ha site with Liss Infant School. The Junior School capacity is 261 pupils and there are currently 254 pupils (7-11 years) in attendance.
1.2	As part of the county-wide strategy to provide Special Educational Needs (SEN) resources, it is now proposed to extend Liss Junior School to provide 10 spaces for pupils with Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD), who will be brought to the school from a wider area. The total estimated cost of the scheme is £365,000, excluding fees.
1.3	The extension to provide additional spaces will enhance the quality of life and maximise wellbeing for pupils with moderate learning difficulties.
1.4	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	Recommendation
2.1	That the Executive Member for Education approves the design project appraisal for Liss Junior School, at a total estimated cost of £365,000, excluding fees.
3	Scope of the Works
3.1	The location of the proposed extension is constrained by the restrictive nature of the site, which is steeply banked. It is therefore proposed to extend adjacent to the school entrance to provide the main teaching space and group room, a new entrance lobby and an extension to the staff work area at first floor.
3.2	In order to construct the extension, it will be necessary to regrade the grassed bank immediately in front of the school building. This will involve the removal of some young trees, which will be reprovided in order to retain the character of the existing landscaping.
3.3	The school and neighbouring areas currently experience ongoing problems with flooding and as a measure to alleviate this problem, the existing balancing pond will be replaced by an underground rainwater storage system. Once the extent and tendered cost of these works is known, sources of funding will be identified, including contributions from landlord repairs and maintenance.
4	Funding and Timing
4.1	The funding for the scheme (excluding fees) is as follows: £ Children's Services Capital Programme 07/08 318,000 School - devolved capital 16,000 Policy & Resources Capital Repairs 07/08 (tbc) 31,000 365,000
4.2	Subject to the necessary approvals it is anticipated that tenders will be invited during August 2007, work will commence on site during October 2007 and be completed during April 2008.
5	Consultation with Local Member
5.1	Councillor Michael Cartwright, the local Member for this area, has been consulted on this design project appraisal and has confirmed that he fully supports the proposal.
Conclusion
The proposed scheme will provide 10 spaces for children with moderate learning difficulties.

LINK(S) TO CORPORATE STRATEGY
	Yes	No
Hampshire safer and more secure for all		_
Maximising well-being	_
Enhancing our quality of place	_

This proposal does not link to the Corporate Strategy but, nevertheless, requires a decision because:

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 - Education

17 May 2007

Project:	Liss Junior School
	Extension and alterations to form new MLD Unit
Commencement date:	October 2007
Completion date:	April 2008
Planned year of start in accordance with Capital Programme:		2007/08

Recommendation:

That the building design project appraisal for the Liss Junior School scheme be approved.

1 Finance

Capital Expenditure	Current Estimate £'000	Capital Programme £'000
Buildings	365	318
Fees	57	52
Land to be purchased	_	_
Total	*422	370

* 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.

Financial Provision for Total Scheme	Buildings £'000	Fees £'000	Total cost £'000
1 From own Resources:
a) Capital Programme (as above)	318	52	370
b) School - devolved capital	16	-	16
2 From Other Resources:
a) Policy and Resources Capital Repairs budget	31	5	36
Total	365	57	422

Building Cost - Net Cost = £1,619 per m² (excluding abnormals)

- Gross Cost = £3,587 per m²

Devolved Capital allocations £'000

2004/05 24,558

2005/06 25,154

2006/07 32,067

2007/08 34,754

Total 116,533

Landlord funded work connected with this scheme

An allocation of £31,000 has been made from Policy and Resources Capital Repairs budget (2007/08) to replace existing single-glazed timber windows with aluminium framed double-glazed window units.

Additional Landlord funding is being considered for works to carry out essential maintenance to the surface water drainage system.

Value of land already acquired for this project

The land forming the site of the development is an integral part of the school campus and is incapable of disposal in isolation. The land was acquired at historic cost and its current value to the County Council is as part of the ground of the establishment.

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	0	3	3	22	25
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 £481 per annum (£5.80 for each m² of new accommodation). The additional CO² consumption will be 2.9 tonnes per year.

2 Details of site and existing infrastructure

Location/adjoining land and buildings

Liss Junior School is located on the edge of the village. The site is bounded by a community recreation ground/playing fields to the north, a private horticultural nursery to the south and by housing on the east and west elevations.

Area including comparison with local/national standards

The total site area is 4 acres (1.619 hectares). The DfES guideline for a school of this size is 2.965 acres (1.2 hectares).

Access

The existing pedestrian and vehicular access is from Hill Brow Road. No changes are proposed to the existing access. However, the pedestrian route within the school boundary will be reconfigured as part of the scheme, to provide a more direct route and better separation of pedestrians and vehicles.

Existing buildings and temporary buildings

The main school building is of traditional construction, dating from 1994, and is considered to be in good condition. There are no temporary buildings on site and none are required for this scheme.

Results of trial boreholes

The foundation design is based on the recent record drawings and soil investigations undertaken when the building was constructed in 1994. Foundations are designed for a bearing capacity of 75kN/m² in sand and sandy clay.

Mains services position

The existing 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 extension will provide 10 spaces for pupils with Moderate Learning Difficulties. The following MLD accommodation is provided:

· Main teaching space

· Group room with work space for co-ordinator

· Associated storage space

· Lobby

· Extended external roof canopy

Places provided

Ten additional spaces will be provided.

4 The Proposed Building

Type of construction, finish and appearance

The proposed extension will be constructed from concrete blockwork cavity walls, which will be painted to match the existing building. The extended roof canopy will have rendered and plywood fascias and soffits to complement existing. The new area of roof will be covered in high-performance waterproof membrane, and windows and doors will be of polyester powder-coated aluminium to match the existing windows and doors to the south elevation.

Impact assessment

The proposed extension will be fully accessible.

Assessment of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act has been considered in the development of this proposal. No adverse impact has been identified in terms of race, creed or gender.

Heating and ventilation systems

The existing heating system will be extended to serve the proposed extension.

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

There are no changes to the existing car parking provision.

Landscape proposals

The grassed bank immediately in front of the school will be regraded to facilitate the construction of the extension. Some existing young trees will be removed and reprovided to retain the character of the landscape.

Situation on site and environmental impact

The proposed extension will ensure that the existing covered area used by waiting parents is recreated under a new roof extension. All materials have been chosen to complement the existing building.

6 Planning

A detailed planning application was submitted during April 2007.

7 Building management

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

8 Furniture and equipment

A separate allocation from the block vote for furniture and equipment will be made nearer the completion of the scheme.

9 Professional resources

Architectural Services } Property, Business and Regulatory Quantity Surveying } " " "

Electrical and Mechanical Engineering } " " "

Structural Engineering } " " "

10 Consultations

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