Montgomerie Park Primary in North Ayrshire gets its green certification

Developed by hub South West Scotland and delivered by main contractor Robertson Construction Central West, the school was officially opened last year by Jenny Gilruth MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills.

Montgomerie Park Primary is the first ‘Passivhaus’ school in the area and earlier this year was certified to the international Passivhaus Classic standard following completion of construction. 

This certification is awarded only after independent testing and verification of the finished building, confirming that it performs as designed.

Passivhaus Standard delivers buildings which provide a high level of comfort for occupants, while using very little energy for heating and cooling. 

Receiving official accreditation demonstrates that the building meets one of the world’s most rigorous standards for energy efficiency, comfort and indoor air quality. Certification confirms that the school uses significantly less energy than a conventional school building, while maintaining a consistently warm, comfortable and well ventilated learning environment.

A plaque has now been erected at the school to proudly show off its Passivhaus status.

Before construction, the building was carefully modelled to assess embodied carbon, providing a clear understanding of the environmental impact of building materials and construction processes. By optimising the design and specification, Robertson reduced embodied carbon in the structural steel frame by more than 50%, achieving an overall embodied carbon impact of 530kgCO2e/m² from inception to completion – comfortably below the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme target.

Andy McLinden, Regional Managing Director, Robertson Construction Central West, said: “Achieving Passivhaus certification confirms the exceptional levels of design, construction quality and sustainability at Montgomerie Park Primary, and shows the building is performing exactly as intended. 

“We have supported North Ayrshire Council with regeneration in the area since 2016, and continue to value the opportunity to work together to deliver projects like this that have such positive long-term social, economic and environmental impacts.”

Councillor Eleanor Collier, Cabinet Member for Economy and Green Environment, said: “We are extremely proud of this amazing facility for the young people at Montgomerie Park Primary School.

“Getting this certification is significant and underlines our ongoing commitment to sustainability and the environment.

“Montgomerie Park is a modern and low-energy school that is providing a wonderful and welcoming learning environment for our young people while significantly reducing its carbon footprint.”

Passivhaus (Passive House) is a rigorous, voluntary international energy-efficient building standard that reduces heating and cooling demand by up to 90% compared to conventional construction. It focuses on a "fabric first" approach, using superior insulation, extreme airtightness, triple glazing, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) to create comfortable, healthy, and low-energy buildings.