Unlocking community facilities to support housing development requirements

Woodford Primary School: a case study

Sitting at the heart of Redrow Homes’ residential-led development on the site of Cheshire’s former Woodford Aerodrome is Woodford Primary School. This new self-delivered primary school, dedicated to serving the development as part of Redrow’s Section 106 (S106) commitment, welcomed its first pupils in time for the 2022-23 academic year and now makes early years education easily accessible for all residents within walking distance, as well as serving the wider community.

The 205-hectare Woodford Garden Village was the first garden village of its kind to be built in the north of England for decades and one of the region’s largest brownfield sites. The masterplan combines 920 new homes, a pub, shops and an extensive network of green spaces. The primary school was deliberately sited as a prominent focal point which integrates into the wider community network of buildings.

Whilst S106 agreements have long been a cornerstone for developers, more recently it has been well documented that with rising costs and tighter financial conditions, S106 agreements are becoming harder to sustain.

Pozzoni Architecture was appointed to unlock this strategically complex scheme with a focus on balancing design flair with economic viability, supported by expert knowledge across sectors including education, housing, district health and masterplanning.

Catherine Mulley, director and education sector specialist at Pozzoni explained “Redrow was committed to investing in a quality one-form entry school to support ambitions of creating a highly desirable community village for families. With a limited initial project brief and without an end-user in place we were quick to advise on the appointment of project manager and specialist education advisor Flinders Chase to support development of the delivery brief and to ensure the scheme was fit for purpose in the short and long term.”

Working collaboratively, the project team liaised with Stockport Council to develop and refine a school specific brief using DfE guidelines, and subsequently sought competitive interest from a range of school trusts and providers.

Catherine continues “With operational feedback identifying that a single form entry school was not operationally viable, the brief was amended to stipulate expansion provision in the future. The initial design for a one form entry swiftly became a two form entry. Developed designs therefore created an expandable teaching block, with multi-functional spaces and plant sized appropriately to allow for ease of future expansion at a later stage as demand increases.”

The scheme was progressed by design and build contractor, Conlon Construction, with the two-form entry teaching element partially constructed to provide one-form entry. Foundations were fully installed to accommodate the designed future extension to enable two-form entry provision.

Initially providing 30 reception class places along with 20 places for pre-school pupils for the appointed end-user Laurus Trust (a multi academy trust with a varied education portfolio), Woodford Primary School is set for continued expansion over the coming years.

Catherine concludes “Pozzoni has become a trusted partner for developers and housebuilders looking to meet S106 obligations. Our market knowledge and trusted industry collaborations create the ability to unlock design and delivery solutions for the benefit of social impact for local communities and economic value for developers. Ensuring the early stages of projects such as Woodford are thoroughly considered plays a crucial part in the success of large-scale developments for a sustainable future.”

To find out more about how we can unlock community schemes for your development contact Catherine Mulley or Nigel Saunders.