The Mid Sussex District Council has given the go-ahead for the construction of Burgess Hill secondary school worth £57 million. The school will be constructed as part of Homes England’s Brookleigh development near Burgess Hill.
Atkins created the school to be carbon-zero, producing all of its own renewable energy on-site and avoiding the use of fossil fuels. 296,000 kWh of energy per year are anticipated to be produced by almost 1,000 solar photovoltaic panels. It intends to become the first school in West Sussex County to receive Passivhaus certification.
The Burgess Hill secondary school is the biggest capital project West Sussex County Council has ever delivered. £57.06 million in capital funding was approved for its construction. Homes England has contributed £18.16 million to this as part of the overall Brookleigh development.
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The Burgess Hill secondary school design
Faithful & Gould, Atkins, and Cundalls are leading on the design of the school. This is through a multidisciplinary consultancy partnership with the County Council. Automatic control of the LED lighting will be provided by the detection of movement and daylight. Fresh air ventilation will also be installed in the main building to control the temperature there.
The school has been designed to promote well-being and educational attainment for all students who use the building. It will also be a project with a low environmental impact, according to Richard Christmas, lead designer at Atkins.
Cabinet member for learning and skills at West Sussex County Council, Nigel Jupp, stated: “Planning approval marks a major milestone in our ambition to build an environmentally friendly and top-notch new secondary school in Mid Sussex. It has a special design that will help it become certified as a Passivhaus.
The Burgess Hill secondary school will also set the bar for energy efficiency. As another example of the county council’s commitment to significantly reducing carbon emissions as part of our climate change strategy, Brookleigh families will be able to walk or cycle to their new place of education.
