The Queen Elizabeth II Wing

We are delighted to announce the opening of the new Sixth Form building, the Queen Elizabeth II block. Students have watched and waited in anticipation over the past few months whilst the building took shape. Our Y13 students are the first students to use the fantastic new facilities in preparation for the final push before their exams in the next month or so. The study room area is designed in a similar way to university study rooms, again to prepare our students for the demands of university life, but there is also a café which allows the students to have some downtime in between their studies. This is an exciting addition to the school, and one which will serve our students well, and help grow the identity of our Sixth Form.

The building was designed to emphasise the school’s commitment to the environment as it uses Hemp Blocks and Lime Plaster rather than cement, gypsum and concrete for the walls and ceiling which have significantly lower embodied carbon content and will contribute to the quality of air in and around the building.  It also includes air-source-heat-pumps for heating rather than gas-boilers and a planted sedum roof rather than tiles.  We are installing roosting boxes for bats, sparrows and starlings as well as creating new areas of soft-landscaping that will enhance biodiversity for insects and birds around the building.

We are very proud that the building has been nominated for two awards in the South-East Construction Awards and was runner-up in the categories of Best Construction Project and Best Architectural Design. We hope the pupils at the school will enjoy using the building and benefit from the facilities over the next decades.