In 2019 Bressingham Primary School were looking for a new outdoor building which they could use all year round as a new learning hub for their school. After various discussions with the headteacher and their PTA chair, a specification of building was drawn up. It had to be as big as possible to accommodate the school’s needs which in this instance was 7.5m x 4m as this size of building still fell outside of building control.

The school wanted to use premium grade building materials and they wanted it to look right within the school environment so rather than using a traditional pitched, gable ended roof design, it was decided to have a hipped roof instead. This was be covered in premium grade IKO black felt shingle tiles. Cedar external cladding was chosen too instead of the standard pressure treated Scandinavian redwood pine. Cedar is a premium grade timber which does not require any further treatment but which does tend to “silver down” over time as it is bleached by the sun.

Natural light was also important to have in the building so the whole front elevation including the French doors used double glazed laminated safety glass. The back wall was solid and the side walls were half glazed, half solid timber.

Internally a laminated floor was fitted and a special decorative V-groove white internal paneling system was used for the walls to make the building seem even lighter. The ceiling used a matchboard pine to again further enhance the natural light requirement.

As the area where it was being sited was liable to holding water, a special groundscrew foundation system was installed raising the building off the floor slightly. This was eventually covered and concealed with cedar skirting around the base perimeter.

These screws were installed within a day and the construction of the building could begin soon thereafter. This took 7 working days to complete.

The school themselves organised for the electrics to be fitted afterwards with a local firm so within a short period of time the building was ready to be used.

It has proved to be a great asset to the school and is well used. The school are currently looking at adding another similar type of building but a bit smaller.