Hertfordshire hero: Buntingford First School

A primary school and nursery designed to the Passivhaus standard, and targeting low embodied carbon materials, will open its doors in September 2023 in Buntingford, Hertfordshire. The school has been developed by Hertfordshire County Council as a pilot to achieve “the first fully net zero carbon school in the county” and, once certified, will be Hertfordshire’s first Passivhaus school.

Buntingford First School. Image credit: Morgan Sindall

We will ensure the children are happy, active learners, developing their curiosity and resilience. The carbon net zero element of our school will permeate through the curriculum, ensuring that the children are well informed and knowledgeable of the issues surrounding climate change, and inspire them to believe that they can make a difference.

Matt Gauthier, Executive Headteacher, Buntingford First School

Key stats

Construction: CLT frame
GIFA: 1643 m²
TFA: 1504 m²
Build start date: 2022
Completed: 2023
Certified: Aiming for Passivhaus

Buntingford First School. Image credit Holmes Miller

Design

The new 330-pupil school, which has ten classrooms and incorporates a nursery, will include a rooftop outdoor classroom and numerous play areas. The school's social areas, such as dining halls and common rooms, are south facing, while all the teaching spaces have been designed to face north to minimise any over-heating risk.

Construction

Reducing embodied carbon of construction materials was core part of the project brief. The design utilises a cross-laminated timber (CLT) frame. GGBS (Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag) has been used for concrete piles and foundations. Innovative trackers are being used to enable the site team to produce as-built embodied carbon data to compare with the initial project targets. The project has an embodied carbon target of 292kg/CO2/m², which meets LETI's 2030 target.

Building performance

Designed energy performance

Target airtightness n₅₀ (≤ 0.6ACH @ 50 Pa)

0.6 @ 50 Pa

Heating Load (≤ 10 W/m²)

10 W/m²

Primary Energy Renewable (PER) Demand (≤ 60 kWh/m².a)*

67 kWh/m².a

Primary Energy Renewable Generation

76 kWh/m².a

*+/-15 kWh/m².a allowance if offset by energy generation. See Passivhaus criteria.

Hertfordshire County Council came to us with a bold brief, meeting Passivhaus and net zero carbon onbjectives, we have collaborated with the whole team to deliver a building which meets these exacting standards whilst also creates a healthy, beautiful and vibrant environment for children.

Matt Bridgestock, Sussed Sustainability

Key team

Client: Hertfordshire County Council
Architect: Holmes Miller
Passivhaus Consultant: Sussed Sustainability
Contractor: Morgan Sindall
Structural engineer: Rolton Group
M&E consultant: Brith Services
Passivhaus Certifier: WARM

Join us at the UK Passivhaus Conference 2023

Discover further educational case studies adopting Passivhaus in our educational buildings campaign or join us as we showcase pioneering Scottish schools on day one of the 2023 UK Passivhaus Conference in Edinburgh.

On the 16th and 17th October, we will be exploring the adaptability of Passivhaus, its implementation and benefits over a diverse range and scale of projects around the UK, and its potential applicability throughout Scotland! Be sure to register early for the site visits!