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FEATURE FOCUS: SCHOOL MAINTENANCE & DESIGN
Building the next best learning environment
In light of the recent global pandemic and
educational facilities taking steps towards a return to face-to-face classes, there has never been a more vital time to fundamentally re-evaluate the role and importance buildings play in our day to day lives. Throughout this time, schools have faced a number of acute challenges as their estates have been closed, reopened and adjusted to adapt to the impact of the pandemic. Factors such as aging buildings, inner-city locations and out of date design concepts have made this adaptation more difficult. These challenges are a sign of things to come, as climate change forces us to rethink what we need from our school, college, and university estates. To meet these challenges, the education sector
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n our final feature this month focusing on school maintenance and design, we are
delighted to hear from Jane Parrinder, National Account Manager at technical engineering solutions provider SPIE UK Ltd, who argues for a re-evaluation of the school built environment and offers advice on tackling regulatory challenges as increasing numbers of schools look to move to a more sustainable future.
will require the introduction of new technologies into its estate as keeping buildings functioning effectively and maintaining a positive environment for the people learning in them is the number one priority. This might be renewable energy solutions for reduced carbon emissions or smart building management systems to optimise heating and lighting use. As schools work to play their part in combatting climate change, whilst also adapting to it, facilities managers need to help their partners in the education sector to tackle these challenges head-on so they can maintain, improve and build learning environments for the future.
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www.education-today.co.uk
Delivering the best learning environment possible to students and professionals School leaders and administration staff are responsible for delivering the best learning environment possible to the students in their care, they shouldn’t be expected to have a comprehensive understanding of facilities management. As the facilities management sector has been brought in more regularly to work with education organisations, so they have realised that tasks can be outsourced and service levels agreed that meet regulatory requirements and guarantee professional delivery of services. This has also brought with it a reassessment of school estates as assets, instead of being a cost. Taking such an approach is going to be critical as the education sector thinks about future investments in its estate to improve health and wellbeing, following the pandemic, and to adapt to climate change. Another key role that facilities managers can
play is as a provider and facilitator of specialist expertise. It is unlikely, if not unreasonable, to think that schools will develop the skills to manage and optimise smart building controls or renewable energy systems. For many facilities managers, however, such technology is either part of their everyday work in other sectors, such as offices, or they have partnerships with trusted suppliers that they can collaborate with to deliver
June 2022
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