St Christopher's High School Sixth Form Centre in Accrington

Award winning, international architects Austin- Smith:Lord have created the new Sixth Form Centre in Accrington, which is one of the most environmentally advanced buildings in Great Britain. St. Christopher’s generates more than 10 per cent of its energy on site by using ground source heat pumps. Natural ventilation and natural lighting are at the heart of the design and lead to a significant reduction in carbon emissions and running costs. The building uses rainwater-harvesting techniques to provide grey water for toilet use. Two three-storey blocks are linked together by a glazed circulation area: one block contains 10 classrooms, a meeting room and laboratories for science, art and ICT and there is a 200 m² multi-purpose hall located in the other block, along with a learning resource centre and student hub. The outside space has been maximised by placing roof top gardens on both blocks, one as a teaching environment for art, the other as a student recreation area. Chris Wright, associate from Austin-Smith: Lord, said: “It has flexible learning space to cater for the different teaching methods and to ensure the best response from students.“ The ventilated façade with ALUCOBOND® tray panels in the colours anodized look C31 and C32 contrasts with the traditional red brick walls.