Netley School

In addition to constructing a single-storey Autistic Unit comprised of classrooms, office and administration, a 3-storey building required demolishing to make way for new community facilities. These had to be constructed within a confined inner London site surrounded by high brick walls and occupied by Victorian buildings, which were in poor condition and unsuitable for conversion.

To enable the scheme to be affordable, it was necessary to take advantage of what was available on site. A detailed examination of the brick walls surrounding the site identified that despite some distortions and shallow foundations, with minimal rebuilding they would be reusable as the external skin of the new building. Excavated material from foundations was also retained and used to support the ground slab during construction.

J&P was faced with a significant depth of fill and a sloping site. The solution was to design a lightweight building with pad foundations enabling us to achieve the required ground bearing pressure at an economical depth.