The £3.8m rear extension to the college involved the construction of a four-storey extension at the rear of the main building to interlink the two buildings and create more teaching space.
Seddon previously successfully completed extensive alterations and complex extension works to the operational Bolton 6th Form College in 2016. Following this, the college chose Seddon to undertake the rear extension.
Before starting the project our team had to carry out extensive relocation of existing live services to allow the piling to be undertaken due to existing services.
Works started with pile foundations ring beams and pile Cats. This then supports a structural steel frame with concrete pre-cast floor planks.
The external makeup is traditional brick and block and clad with elements of zinc cladding and large sections of curtain wall to aid natural light for the learning facilities.
Additional work carried out was the reconfiguration of the existing building to allow us to merge classrooms and open up more space, this was done during the school holidays so as to not disturb students and teachers during term time.
The roof utilised for the project was the Bauder roof system which is robust and durable, with mechanical plant installed on the roof, including solar panels to utilise energy. The interior and exterior painting was completed by our painting team.
During works, a timelapse camera was added to one of the site cabins to ensure we could document progress on-site and share this with the client.
We continually worked closely with the college, and they came on regular site visits to see the progress of the building. Our team of Bid writers went into the college to speak with the students about career paths within construction.
During works the COVID-19 pandemic hit, our teams brought extra hygiene and social distancing procedures to help keep people safe. During the outbreak, we managed to keep the workforce going, though having to reduce labour.
There were many challenges throughout the project, including working within an operational college facility and within a busy town centre location. This resulted in careful coordination of works and deliveries, ensuring minimal disruption to the college, students, staff and the surrounding business’ and road networks. The main disruptive and major structural works were undertaken during the summer holiday period ensuring safe working and minimal disruption to college operations.
