Over a dozen students from Year 10 were delighted to be among the first visitors to get an exclusive tour of the new Sixth Form and Arts Building last week.
They visited at a particularly interesting moment during the construction process, when key visual elements were being added, including the roof and Velux roof windows as well as the unveiling of the underside to the roof light wells following the removal of the falsework supports.
During the tour, students got a feel for the new space as they were shown the location of the new lecture theatre, Mac suite, dark room, classrooms and break-out spaces. They asked some fascinating and perceptive questions of Project Manager, Matt Bowler, and his team, including the function of open spaces within the building and the process by which brickwork is applied. They also got pretty excited when they heard about the potential introduction of a Tango Ice Blast machine – although Matt Bowler was keen to point out that the final decision as to its fate rests with the teachers!
There will be another visit on Thursday 7th May – this time by Year 11 – which will coincide with the addition of steelwork along the West and North elevations and brickwork along the North elevation. Matt Bowler of Beard is delighted with the continued progress being made on the project, commenting that, ‘despite the logistical challenges we are progressing well with all elements. The primary focus at this stage is to close the building up and make it weather-tight, so roof/external walls/doors & windows/brick-work are the present activities.’
