Bam lines up £60m Greater Manchester free schools deal
Education provider Laurus Trust and the Education & Skills Funding Agency has chosen Bam to build four schools in Cheadle, Didsbury, and Tameside, in a deal that could provide 3,750 school places.
Bam has started work on the first of the three projects, which includes two schools: Cheadle Hulme Primary School and Laurus Cheadle Hulme. Both will be built on a site next to Cheadle Sixth Form College and Bruntwood Park, and are due to fully open in February 2019. Parts of the school will be open in September 2018 in time for the 2018/2019 academic year.
Alongside the new school facilities, Bam will also build a new sports hall which will be available for use by the local community.
The contractor will also undertake highways improvement works along Cheadle Road and provide two new pedestrian access routes to the school.
The design team for Cheadle Hulme includes IBI as design partner; Mott MacDonald as structural and civil engineer; Ramboll as building services engineer; and Spacezero as interior fit-out contractor.
Plans for the Cheadle Hulme schools were approved in October this year, and the project is understood to be worth around £20m.
Bam is also developing plans for two further schools with the Laurus Trust in Didsbury and Tameside.
The contractor is working on designs for a 1,350-place school in Didsbury, which will see a planning application submitted before Christmas. Subject to planning approval, the project could start on site in May next year, with the school due to open in September 2019.
The design team for Didsbury also includes Ramboll and Spacezero, as well as Pozzoni as architect, Dally Henderson as landscape architect, and Mace. Like the Cheadle Hulme schools, the project is understood to be worth around £20m.
Bam was chosen for the Cheadle and Didsbury schools following a competitive tender through the ESFA’s education framework.
The final school, a 1,350-place secondary education facility and sixth form, is planned for the site of the former Littlemoss School on Cryer Street.
The 14-acre site has been vacant since Littlemoss School was demolished in 2012. The proposed school will be 110,000 sq ft and extend over three storeys, and will include three football pitches and a multi-use games area.
Laurus Trust held a public consultation on the initial plans for the school in the summer, and plans to hold another consultation on the detailed plans before the end of the year. Planner Cushman & Wakefield submitted an EIA screening opinion for the scheme in October this year.
The design team for the project is the same as for Laurus Didsbury, and Place North West understands the scheme is of a similar value at around £20m.
Bam has been lined up for the Tameside school on a negotiated basis with the Laurus Trust.
Ian Fleming, Regional Director for BAM Construction, said: “Education is a key market for BAM. Our track record is excellent, and our highly collaborative approach works well for schools.
“It is also a sign of great trust that the ESFA and Laurus Trust felt able to appoint us for both these schemes, showing that we have started to build the kind of understanding and confidence that drives a successful construction partnership.”
