Tier One construction company Morgan Sindall Construction, and teachers and students have come together to celebrate the start of works at E-ACT North Birmingham Academy, on behalf of Acivico, a wholly owned subsidiary of Birmingham City Council.
The Academy’s Headteacher Michelle Scott, Senior Deputy Headteacher, Jo Paddock, and Deputy Headteacher, Chris Newman, along with four students from the school helped to break ground and trowel concrete. They were joined by members of Morgan Sindall’s on-site team including Project Manager, Carl Edwards, as well as Acivico’s Senior Project Manager, Sara Smith.
The project was procured through the Constructing West Midlands Framework, which is aimed at improving public and third-sector facilities in the West Midlands region. The £11m extension and refurbishment began initial enabling works in April and is due to complete in July 2024.
Morgan Sindall is set to enhance and refurbish the current facilities for the academy as well as providing a new sports field — taking the size of the campus to 2,500sq.m. The contractor will also construct a new two-floor extension connecting to the existing building, which will provide extra teaching space for a further 300 students.
As Morgan Sindall continues its contribution towards creating a sustainable future, this project is on track to achieve a BREEAM rating of excellent, meeting environmental and net zero criteria, whilst employing a local supply chain and sub-contractors.
Through using their Intelligent Solutions approach — which aims to support their customers and end-users — Morgan Sindall have donated technology teaching walls to the school. This will be used for mock electrical workshops, aiding the school in its delivery of STEM education.
Richard Fielding, Area Director for Morgan Sindall’s Midlands team, said: “It was great to celebrate this special project here in Birmingham with everyone involved and it was great to see the children get hands on with trowelling concrete on site to mark the occasion.
“We’re determined, as ever, to provide E-ACT North Birmingham Academy with a sophisticated, sustainable learning environment in which they have the utmost opportunity to thrive. As this project progresses, we look forward to collaborating with the school; it’s staff, students and parents, as well as the local community, in delivering a lasting legacy for the area.”
Michelle Scott, Headteacher at E-ACT North Birmingham Academy, commented: “We are so pleased to be working with Morgan Sindall Construction, Birmingham City Council and Acivico on improving our academy facilities. The fact that our students are being offered opportunities to be involved in this project too makes it even more exciting and we’re looking forward to next summer when we can start enjoying the refurbishment, including exciting changes to our current building, a new sports field and the building extension.”
Lindsay Harris, Acivico Director of Programme and Project Management said: “We’re excited to be delivering this project, working in partnership with North Birmingham Academy, Birmingham Education Infrastructure Services and our CWM Framework Contractor Morgan Sindall.
“This is an excellent opportunity also for the pupils of North Birmingham Academy to view first-hand the construction of the new build, which we hope will create an interest in developing careers in construction, developing the next generation for the construction industry.”
