Funded through the Leeds BSF Project to create a new inclusive environment offering education for young people with a range of learning difficulties within a High Care Partnership (HCP) thereby offering the same opportunities for the learning experience equal to those able students in the existing remodeled school. The High Care Partnership at Farnley Park Academy will cater for 30 full time students with ages ranging from 11-19years of age. The new facility comprises of: a main academy reception, multi-purpose assembly hall, theatre, LRC library, refectory positioned over two-storeys, catering, student services, seminar rooms, IT suites and break out areas, four-court sports hall and changing facilities, dance and drama studios, 6th form centre and computer graphics and sound suites.
The students are either; blind, deaf, autistic (ASD), have behavioral difficulties or are physically or mentally less able required understanding from first principles. Each group often requires a completely different environment in which to flourish. For example, if a range of bright colours are used in a school for autistic children, the impact could distract and upset students from their work, whereas a similar high contrast colour scheme could be seen as essential in a school for visually impaired children. We held visioning workshops with service provider teams including educational psychologists, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, nurses, specialist staff from the sensory impairment teams, social workers, education welfare officers and careers advisors to ensure practical operations were considered.
A low CO2 energy approach was taken to ensure that the BREEAM Very Good standard was achieved in line with the client budget and KPI’s. The HCP benefits from Natural Daylight and Ventilation designed to Building Bulletin 101 Super Insulated building fabric exceeding Building Regulations Standards, high Performance glazing , low air permeability levels and low energy light fittings are incorporated along with passiveand active measures to reduce solar gain.
