School of innovation

Pupils at an independent school in East Sussex are enjoying their newly found freedom thanks to a unique wheelchair guidance system.

The system was just one aspect of a £2.2m project to create a new 1,255m2 teaching unit at Chailey Heritage School near Lewes.

The guidance system, which allows the children to move independently around the building, was conceived by the school and made by building services engineer Crofton Design. Signal generator wires were embedded in the floor and emit signals that

are picked up by receivers located on every child's wheelchair.

The teaching unit overall involved the construction of five classrooms, a hygiene unit and a two-storey administrative block. These elements were then brought together by a large central hall, which was to act as a new front door to the school.

However, getting the hall in place was at first challenging for Chris O'Brien, from QS firm Wenham O'Brien: "The setting out of the double curved suspended timber slatted ceiling in the main hall presented its own unique problem in terms of the nature of the curve required in the ceiling and the pitch and curves of the roof structure. However, the time spent between the architect, contractor and specialist subcontractor to overcome the design issues was rewarded with a ceiling that has produced a spectacular environment."

Improving the lighting further enhanced the building. Sustainable fittings and up-lighting in the hall formed the mainstay of the scheme and complemented the slatted curved ceiling. Classroom roofs are now punctuated with rooflights allowing daylight to reach the rear of the rooms and providing natural ventilation.

The scheme went over deadline but O'Brien reckons it was worth it. "Although the project was completed two months behind programme, mainly due to procurement issues, it was completed within budget and to a high standard - issues which have outweighed the short-term disappointment of not meeting the completion date," he said.

A traditional JCT 98 contract was used and as part of the selection process pre-tender interviews were held on site with contractors to gauge their experience and for them to assess the complexity of the project.

"Personal satisfaction came from being involved with a project where the client, although mindful of financial constraints, was adventurous enough to allow the architect to design a landmark building to achieve an innovative and exciting teaching environment and which has delivered on all fronts," said O'Brien.

The structural engineer was BEP Consulting Engineers. The architect was Hazle McCormack and the contractor was Sunninghill Construction.

The job was tendered in April 2004, construction began in August 2004 and work was completed in September 2005.