Ashburton Learning Village
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| Ashburton Learning Village | |
| Building Information | |
|---|---|
| Name | Ashburton Learning Village |
| Location | Woodside, London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Architect | Penoyre & Prasad / Noam Raz |
| Client | Norwest Holst / London Borough of Croydon |
| Construction Start Date | June 2004 |
| Completion Date | 2006 |
| Cost | £20 Million |
Ashburton Learning Village is a learning complex in Woodside, London. It stands in the London Borough of Croydon and is located near Ashburton Park. The learning village includes the new Ashburton Library, Ashburton Community School, Croydon Music Service and a training centre. The complex was built after the old Ashburton Library was closed down. The nearest Tramlink stop is at Woodside which is for Tramlink Route 1 and Tramlink Route 2. The centre is earmarked as Croydon's Flagship Learning Village.
The £20 million secondary school, library and community facilities is the borough’s first education Private Finance Initiative (PFI) development. Photovoltaic cells integrated into clerestory glazing will cast dappled shadows along a three-storey central concourse running through the heart of the building. An overhanging roof canopy will provide shelter to the main public entrance.[1]
Energy minister Malcolm Wicks has praised the new development in Croydon for its innovative design and energy-efficient features.
The MP for Croydon North said
| “ | The learning village will become a true beacon of excellence in our community. Apart from its huge potential in terms of education, it is significant that the building has taken sustainable energy seriously. It points to a better future, not only for education but also for clean energy.[2] | ” |
The south-facing building, designed by architects Penoyre & Prasad and built by Norwest Holst, includes many environmentally-friendly features which includes:
Contents |
[edit] Special features
- The largest solar panels to be installed in a building in the UK
- A rain water tank to feed toilets and service sinks
- Movement-sensitive automatic lights
- Sun tubes for rooms without windows in the form of polished chrome cylinders that are fitted in the ceiling and protrude from the roof and, with the help of micro prism glass, magnify the light coming into the room and thus reduce the need for electric lights
- Floor-to-ceiling windows and sky lights in the library, which again reduce the need for electric lights
- A brise soleil - a permanent blind that stops glare from the sun but allows maximum daylight into rooms - installed on the outside of the library windows
- Air-pressure tests to ensure the buildings heat insulation reaches the required standard
- School computer equipment locked into desks and only activated by a main key, reducing the possibility of theft and damage, while allowing full use to users.
As well as Croydon Music Service and CETS having access to these amenities, the entire community will benefit as they are available for use after school hours, at weekends and during school holidays. In particular, members of the public can use the gym areas and changing rooms daily.
School safety was also high on the design brief and all areas have been made secure with the use of card keys. Everyone entering the building must do so through the main reception. Locked areas are automatically deactivated if the fire alarm should go off.
In March, the former Secretary of State for Education Ruth Kelly MP visited the learning village, and marked the end of the construction period with a foundation stone taken from the original school, which opened in 1950.
She said
| “ | I was very impressed with what I saw. It is a flagship development which benefits both the pupils and the community | ” |
Work on Ashburton Learning Village, Shirley Road, Croydon, started in June 2004 but plans to redevelop the school had been in the pipeline since 2001, when Croydon Council secured government backing from the then Department for Education and Employment through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI).
Additional PFI credits were granted by the Department for Culture, Media and Sports and the Department for Trade and Industry, enabling Ashburton library to move from its current home in Ashburton Park and allowing the more ambitious plans to create a learning village for the whole community to be developed.
As part of the project, 100 new homes will be built on the surplus land. Once the school has moved into its new accommodation, the old buildings will be demolished. A 75-place nursery will be developed at the old Ashburton library site.
Under the PFI agreement, Jarvis plc is responsible for the maintenance of the building for the next 30 years.[3]
[edit] Ashburton Library
Ashburton Library is a Public Library located in the learning village. It is owned by the London Borough of Croydon and is part of the Croydon Libraries arm of the council[1]. The library, unlike many other Croydon Libraries, is based on only one floor. Croydon has said that it would like to redo all of its libraries so they could all be disabled accesiable. The library moved in when it finished building in March, 2006.
Like all Croydon libraries it includes free access to PCs which includes the internet. Books, CDs, DVDs, videos for reference and loan.
Here's a list of other things which the library includes:
- Children's library
- Enquiry service
- Local history material
- Black and white photocopier
- Books in community languages
- Newspapers and periodicals
- Community information
- Reading groups
The library is closed on Wednesdays and Sundays. Plus the following baby and toddler events take place during the school term. Bookstart Rhymetime, Wiggle and Jiggle and Storytime.
[edit] Ashburton Community School
| Ashburton Community School | |
| Headteacher | Mr R V Warne |
| Location | Shirley Road Croydon Surrey CR9 7AL England |
| LEA | London Borough of Croydon |
| Ofsted number | 101808 |
| Students | 1171 |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Ages | 11 to 16 |
| Coordinates: | |
Ashburton Community School is a secondary comprehensive community school located in the heart of the learning village. It is co-educational and has approximately 1200 pupils aged 11-16.
The school recently moved into the new building which was built on the site of the old 'A block' in April, 2006. The Headteacher of the school is Richard Warne. The community school is most of the three-storey building which includes modern, high-tech classrooms and science laboratories. A flexible hall, which can be used as a single space, with a stage and auditorium, or divided into two separate spaces, the stage as a fully-functioning dance studio with sprung floor and wall mirrors and the hall with lighting rig, sound equipment and control room. An all-weather, floodlit sports pitch and multi-games area. A sports hall and extra gym and exercise areas, with changing rooms. Sound-proof music practice rooms and recording studio with all the latest technology.
Ashburton school has been known as one of the 'rough' schools in London in the past. This label has proved to be hard to shake off due to the mis-management of the school in the early 1990s.[citations needed]
Despite its reputation, the school is considered to have come on leaps and bounds since Richard Warne appointment as headmaster in the late 1990s. Despite still producing under-average results on the whole, the school is improving at a fast rate and last year received a 49% pass rate in 5 levels A-C.[citations needed]
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Ashburton Learning Village
[edit] Ashburton Library
[edit] Ashburton Community School
[edit] References
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