Greystones Community College, Wicklow

The challenge: meeting the demand for inclusive education

The population of the coastal resort of Greystones in County Wicklow has expanded rapidly since the 1970s, resulting in ever-rising demand for school places.

At the end of the school year in July 2024 – when work began on the project – the students and staff at Greystones Community College were spread across three different campuses, in temporary accommodation. So delivering a new, single-site school in a short space of time was a vital move to create a real sense of community and shared learning, as well as to simplify logistics and transport.

The BAM solution: a sustainable response to accommodate growing pupil numbers

The design and build project has delivered a modern, light-filled school that can accommodate around 1,000 students. Parts of the building rise to three storeys, with the rest on two levels carved into a sloping site. The campus also features a special needs unit and a general-purpose hall with all ancillary pupil and staff facilities.

BAM created a new car parking and drop-off area on the site and carried out all the associated site works including boundary fencing, ball courts, hard and soft play areas and a sensory garden. Surface water attenuation is an important element of the landscaping throughout the site.

In terms of the main build, BAM choose a precast concrete solution , in line with many of its recent education projects. This modern method of construction delivers many benefits, including rapid turnaround on site compared with more traditional approaches.

This is also a sustainable solution, as it uses GGBS – a recycled by-product from blast-furnaces – to improve the carbon footprint during offsite manufacturing. Precast concrete elements are also fully recyclable at the end of their lifespan. This technology, delivered in partnership with BAM’s supply chain partner Concast, is being used across all the Lot 6A schools.

The results: sustainable, modern learning spaces

Sustainability has been a key driver on the project, resulting in a lower carbon footprint and a school which is more economical to run.

For example, BAM used soil stabilisation below raft slab foundations as an efficient and sustainable solution. This approach meant there was no need to excavate large volumes of soil to be taken off site and replaced with imported fill material. The existing soil from the cut excavations was reused: a much greener solution.

An Taoiseach, Simon Harris TD, speaking at the sod turning which marked the start of the project in 2024, said: “This ambitious new school project for Greystones Community College… represents a significant investment in delivering state of the art permanent accommodation for Greystones’ newest school. The new school building will enable the management of the school to cater for the increasing demands to access post primary education here in Greystones.”