The Marshall Centre for Learning: An Environmentally Friendly Educational Building
The Marshall Centre for Learning: An Environmentally Friendly Educational Building
Felsted’s new Marshall Centre for Learning has been designed in line with the school’s commitment to caring for our environment and, beneath its contemporary design, some of the latest technology ensures that it is an extremely energy-efficient building.
There are many innovative features of Felsted’s new Marshall Centre for Learning, which was officially opened this term on the senior school site. Its ten generous classrooms have high ceilings, large windows and even writable walls so that students can collaborate on projects together. Large screens in each room mean students can cast their mobile devices and share their work with the class and several of the dividing walls can be moved aside to create even bigger spaces when needed. There are also break-out rooms and pods to encourage independent learning.
But there is even more innovation in the fabric of the building, particularly in the ventilation and lighting systems which have been specified to make sure The Marshall Centre is as energy efficient as possible and minimising its impact on the environment.
The learning spaces are kept at a comfortable temperature thanks to the building’s natural ventilation system. Low-carbon and sustainable, the latest Monodraught system chosen for the Marshall Centre by the school’s architect John Squires and Stuart Cadman, managing director of Cadman Construction, makes use of the passive effects of wind speed or differences of pressure to create a healthy indoor environment without relying on energy-guzzling mechanical systems.
Lighting in the building is also low-energy throughout. The Marshall Centre’s Thorlux Smart lighting system has specialist controls to help keep consumption to a minimum, and the floor-to-ceiling windows in every classroom allow daylight to flood in, so the electric lights can stay off more of the time. In fact, the school can expect to save at least 70% on its lighting bill compared to regular lighting – crucial in these times of soaring energy costs.
These energy-efficient measures have earnt The Marshall Centre an EPC ‘A’ rating.
‘The Marshall Centre for Learning has quickly become the focal point for teaching and learning at the senior school,’ said Felsted’s head, Chris Townsend.
‘It signifies our commitment to providing a sustainable and energy-efficient environment that enables our students to get the most out of the academic education we offer.’
