Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Pick Everard Completes New Special Education School in England

  • By Matt Jones
  • 09/03/24

Multidisciplinary consultancy Pick Everard recently announced that construction is complete on a new specialist school for students with Social, Emotional, and Mental Health (SEMH) needs in Shepshed, Leicestershire, England, according to a news release. Bowman Academy will open in September 2024 and serve students ages 4–16.

The academy will feature amenities like vinyl spaces for practical learning purposes, a sensory dark room, a calming room, and practical teaching spaces including a domestic kitchen and library. The school has capacity for 64 students, 16 primary-aged children (two ground-floor classrooms) and 48 secondary-aged children (two ground-floor classrooms and four more on the floor above).


Bowman Academy
Image courtesy of Pick Everard

“Working on SEND [Special Educational Needs and Disabilities] schools is always a privilege, with unique design applications and special consideration for the needs of a diverse range of learning,” said Joe West, Pick Everard associate. “Creating an environment that is both functional and comfortable for pupils was central to the aims of the project, which should in turn aid the school in attracting and retaining students in the area.”

The school also partnered with general contractor Bowmer + Kirkland for the project’s construction.

Sustainability initiatives include a “fabric-first” approach to increase insulation, heat recovery, and air-tightness. The school also features high-efficiency boilers, LED lighting with occupancy and daylight controls, and a photovoltaic panel array that offsets ten percent of the school’s energy consumption.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.

  • Tomball ISD Opens New Tomball West High School

    Tomball Independent School District in Tomball, Texas, recently celebrated the official opening of Tomball West High School, the district's third comprehensive high school, with a community ribbon-cutting ceremony, according to a district news release.

  • Growing Allied Health Workforce Demands Fueling Greater Need for Higher Education Facilities

    With the demand for healthcare professionals at an all-time high, colleges and universities are challenged with supporting the workforce demands in their own communities. Careers in allied health generally require specific training and/or certification, with some positions requiring degrees, certified credentials, and continuing education.