Perth Academy refurbishment
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Summary
A bold new chapter for a 90-year-old school
Perth Academy shares campus grounds with two other schools, including Viewland’s Primary School and Fairview Primary School, which also provides facilities for 3–18-year-olds with complex learning needs. The current building has been on site for 90 years. Since 2019, the school has been undergoing a rolling refurbishment programme which consists of 8 phases, transforming a range of classrooms and areas across the school, with works being delivered by Robertson Tayside’s established Small Works team.
Key facts
- Concrete and structural repairs to windowsills
- Refurbishment works to CDT including additional ventilation works and installation of new CDT equipment
- Lighting refurbishment to corridor spaces
- Classroom refurbishments, roof surveys and replacement of flat roofing
- Curtain walling
- Gym hall structural steel remedials including wind posts and head restraints
- Electrical switch gear upgrades
Innovative solutions to overcome challenges
The project has been conducted in a live school environment including during exam season, which demanded careful planning to minimise disruption. To further accommodate this, much of the work that was carried out was scheduled outside of school hours to ensure the safety and comfort of pupils and staff. Strategic phasing allowed for smooth and efficient coordination of logistics throughout the project.
Temporary works included the installation of bridged scaffolding to facilitate a a greenhouse replacement. Due to restricted site access, large delivery vehicles were unable to enter the premises, so materials were transported using a forklift. Noisy operations were carried out early in the morning before the school day began, and a combination of noise suppression panels and alternative working methods were employed to further reduce disruption to the learning environment.
Building community wealth
A donation of £3,000 was made to Perth Academy to fund access to Global Bridge, a digital platform that helps young people showcase their skills and talents beyond exam results, while connecting them with future career and education opportunities. This funding enabled students to take part in a wide range of learning activities designed to support their personal and professional development.
To further inspire the next generation, we also took part in several careers fairs at the school, promoting Robertson and raising awareness of the diverse opportunities available in the construction industry.
Managing noise levels and ensuring safety
Working on a live school site came with a unique set of challenges - most notably, managing noise levels to minimise disruption to the school’s classrooms. To address this issue, we took a proactive approach by coordinating with the school to schedule regular work breaks during class hours. This allowed us to align our construction activity with the school's timetable and reduce noise at critical times, for example, during exam season.
We introduced several solutions, including trialling noise-reducing barriers, however, we found these to be largely ineffective. Continuing their use would not only fail to solve the problem but would also add unnecessary costs for the client.
Another key priority was school and pupil safety. We worked diligently to ensure that all work areas were securely locked whenever unattended, preventing any chance of children accessing the site. In addition, we installed CCTV to act as both a monitoring tool and a deterrent, further safeguarding the site during off-hours.
