The design of a new £17m junior school in Horsham puts flexible learning, inclusive spaces and low-carbon operation at the heart of the development
Morgan Sindall Construction’s Southern Home Counties business has been appointed to deliver the replacement Greenway Junior School through the Department for Education’s School Rebuilding Programme, with ECE Architecture acting as lead consultant.
The project will see a new two-storey school constructed alongside a series of external teaching and recreation spaces. Once pupils and staff have moved into the new building, the existing school buildings will be demolished as part of a phased approach to the redevelopment.
Architecture designed around learning and flexibility
The new Greenway Junior School will feature 12 classrooms complemented by a range of specialist and shared spaces including an assembly hall, sports facilities, library, food technology room and group rooms, alongside reception, staff workspace, kitchen and WC facilities.
A key element of the design is a self-contained Special Educational Needs (SEN) suite, providing dedicated learning accommodation with direct access to an external play area.
The development also incorporates a new access road and additional parking for the existing nursery.
Externally, the scheme will provide dedicated teaching areas, a new playground, multi-use games area (MUGA) pitch and playing field, creating a wider landscape for learning, recreation and physical activity.
Designing for low-carbon operation
Sustainability is a central consideration of the scheme, which has been designed to achieve Net Zero Carbon in Operation in line with the DfE Output Specification 2021.
The school’s heating strategy uses air source heat pumps located on the roof within an acoustic enclosure. These will provide low-temperature hot water to radiant panels in the main hall and hybrid ventilation units with heat recovery in classrooms.
The approach combines heating and ventilation strategies to support thermal comfort while reducing operational energy demand.
Renewable energy generation will be provided through a bio-solar roof system incorporating photovoltaic panels.
The wider landscape design also incorporates sustainable drainage measures, including swales, permeable paving and attenuation basins. These features are intended to manage surface water and reduce pressure on the local sewer network.
The scheme has also been designed to deliver a 4% Biodiversity Net Gain, embedding ecological considerations within the wider site strategy.
Using digital carbon assessment to inform the design
Carbon reduction has been considered across both the construction and operational phases of the project.
The digital carbon calculation tool CarboniCa has been used to incorporate carbon reduction measures into the development, with the platform also set to be used at project completion to audit actual carbon performance during construction.
This provides a means of assessing the project’s carbon performance against its intended outcomes rather than treating sustainability as a consideration limited to the design stage.
A new school designed for its community
Alongside the architectural and environmental objectives, the project has been structured to deliver wider social value for Horsham.
Morgan Sindall Construction will provide 60 hours of engagement with schools to showcase construction careers, while four apprentices and four T Level placements will be supported during the project.
The team will also provide 10 work experience placements and dedicate 80 hours to helping local people access employment opportunities.
A further 84 hours of volunteering will support local community initiatives, extending the project’s impact beyond the construction of the new school itself.
Guy Hannell, area director for Morgan Sindall Construction in the Southern Home Counties, said: “Greenway Junior School will give pupils a modern, sustainable learning environment built with their needs, and the local community’s, front of mind.
“From the dedicated SEN facilities to the fossil-fuel-free heating system, every single part of this project has been designed to last well beyond the day the doors open. We’re incredibly proud to have been appointed and look forward to getting started on site.”
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