27th September 2022

Award win for Crosfields School

Crosfields School, near Reading, Berkshire, has picked up another award for its cleverly designed and ultra-sustainable new classroom block. Last week, it was named as the Education Project of the Year at the Offsite Awards 2022.

Coming hot on the heels of a prestigious Constructing Excellence SECBE award, the building is a best-practice example of ingenuity, creativity and collaboration to achieve amazing results.

Completed in October 2021, the building comprises a visually exciting S-shaped structure that includes 9 classrooms and a solar-shaded courtyard for pupils to relax between lessons.

A structurally ambitious project from the outset, Perega’s team of engineers was instrumental to its successful construction, from providing essential ground assessments to the block’s design and installation.

Significantly, the latest award also showcases the benefits of offsite construction, particularly in its ability to deliver eco-friendly builds, meeting the requirements of a low-carbon MMC-specific brief, as was the case with Crosfields School.

To meet the client’s strict criteria, our team collaborated with David Miller Architects, developing the design framework concept for the new classroom block, which included an innovative cross-laminated timber structure (CLT) to achieve the building’s curved design and ensure it was delivered within the scheduled time-frame set.

Director, Paul Jarvis, who was involved in the project, says: “For Crosfields School to scoop the Education Project of the Year prize at the Offsite Awards perfectly recognises the vast benefits MMC and modular construction offer, for this vertical and beyond. Furthermore, it demonstrates the structural qualities and benefits of working with CLT. I hope accolades like this inspire others to consider going modular, rather than turning to materials that accumulate more waste, when looking to meet increasingly tighter low-carbon requirements.

The new structure is currently in the first of two phases and has been specifically designed to allow for future expansion as the school grows.

To find out more about Perega’s extensive experience in the education sector, click here.