Swallow Hill Community College, Leeds

Facilities management, Swallow Hill Community College, Leeds

Facts and figures

  • Largest of the PFI Schools on the Leeds BSF to date
  • It is the fifth School on PFI project
  • Designed to be a focal point in the local community
  • The school staff have had much input to the design and operational ethos of the school

The school

The Leeds £32m PFI school provides facilities for 1,380 pupils and has been operational by September 2009 with facilities management services running over twenty-five years.

Achieving the school delivery date

The school was the first BSF phase 2 project achieving financial close in the country and the Interserve-led consortium and the Council achieved financial close in record time through dedicated teamwork to provide the school within the required timescale. This challenging programme was achieved by innovative planning techniques and running design development activities concurrent with the financial close process.

How was value for money provided?

Value for money was considered throughout the design process. Through working closely together with the school and the Council, Interserve was able to deliver educational aspirations whilst keeping within the budget and providing value for money. Value for money tests were carried out at the earliest opportunity by market testing.

Interserve’s partnership approach to whole life costing was facilitated by the construction and facilities management team. Being two parts of the same company and located together assisted with design development, the removal of risk interfaces and with resolving the affordability gap.

This approach to whole life costing also informed the decision making process from materials to the detail of how toilet paper was to be provided and stored, minimising the potential for difficulties once the building is up and running and maximising available teaching space.

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