Bourton on the Water Primary School

Quattro’s Education Architects were appointed by Bourton on the Water Primary Academy to undertake a Premises Development Plan (PDP) to prepare for future expansion requested by Gloucestershire County Council.

Our school building designers were mindful of all aspects of this highly sensitive and constrained site; applying Quattro’s extensive educational architecture experience.

The Challenge

Quattro’s Education Architects were appointed by Bourton on the Water Primary Academy to undertake a Premises Development Plan (PDP) to prepare for future expansion requested by Gloucestershire County Council to meet the needs from housing development in the surrounding area.

The masterplan needed to be considered in a phased approach, to be undertaken through 6 stages, as this would be happening in a live school environment. The school has expanded from 1 to 1.5 FE forms of entry.

Our Solution

The first phase, an extension to the hall and a new kitchen, was completed June 2018 and unlocks the initial classroom which was critical to future phasing. The second phase was a new main entrance and internal reorganisation which was submitted for planning approval in March 2018 and was completed in October 2018. The final phase 3 was a single storey extension to provide additional classrooms and was completed in July 2020.

The phases, which allowed the school to continue to function effectively throughout the project, were designed and programmed so that the large and supporting spaces such as the hall, kitchen and administration facilities could accommodate the later expansions of the classrooms and the subsequent increase in numbers.

Our school building designers were mindful of all aspects of this highly sensitive and constrained site; applying Quattro’s extensive educational architecture experience the project delivery successfully met the following site challenges:

Limited size and poor access
Immediate adjacent to a conservation area
Within the setting of a Grade II* listed church
The main school is housed in a Victorian building, which is of great significance to the surrounding area
Significant archaeological interest – early consultation with archaeologists, Cotswold District Council, the school and wider design team informed the locations for any development

The end result is a design that is both sensitive to the site and meets the school’s requirements.