Sustainable design - BREEAM
Page updated on: 01/10/2024
BREEAM (Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method) is the world’s leading and most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings. It sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design. Credits are awarded in ten categories according to performance. These credits are then added together to produce a single overall score on a scale of Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding.
BREEAM Rating | Score % |
---|---|
Unclassified | < 30% |
Pass | > 30% |
Good | > 45% |
Very Good | > 55% |
Excellent | > 70% |
Outstanding | > 85% |
In a move towards more sustainable and zero carbon buildings the Welsh Government (WG) Planning Policy now requires projects with a floor area greater than 1000m2, to achieve a BREEAM Very Good rating. In addition WG require an Excellent rating to be achieved for projects where they provide core funding.
Project Description:
The overall project is extending and adapting the existing school, Block 17 has been constructed to create a state of the art SEN block to serve all levels of learning difficulties.
BREEAM Rating and score:
Block 17 is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. A score of 77.67% was scored during the Interim Assessment.
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost (£/ m2) | £766,373.18 |
Services Costs (£/ m2) | £254,590.00 |
External Works (£/ m2) | £58,271.00 |
Gross floor area | 1,717.4m2 |
Total area of site | 11.43 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | n/a |
Area of circulation | 269m2 |
Area of storage | 320.5m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 8.67 kWh/m2 Equipment: 20.96 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 30.87 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | 2.84 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 2.96 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 40% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
Innovative construction management techniques have been detailed within the Project Environmental Management Plan, the main aims and objectives are:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Dyffryn Aman is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of coherence with tortuous, external circulation routes. It was necessary to add new buildings but these are a small proportion of the overall work as it is more expensive to demolish and rebuild than to adapt.
New buildings have been provided to develop key resources for Special Educational Needs (Block 17) and to develop the Sixth Form along with providing new reception / administration areas to welcome visitors to the school (Block1 18).
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.
Project Description:
The overall project is extending and adapting the existing school, Block 18 is being constructed to create a new sixth form centre with IT study rooms. The lower floor will be new management and administrative spaces.
BREEAM Rating and score:
Block 18 is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. (The currently predicated score is 75%).
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost (£/ m2) | £1,064,421.62 |
Services Costs (£/ m2) | £482,022.85 |
External Works (£/ m2) | £12,000.00 |
Gross floor area | 1,272.9m2 |
Total area of site | 11.43 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | Teaching areas: 396.7m2 Admin areas: 306.7m2 |
Area of circulation | 477.7m2 |
Area of storage | 38m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 7.12 kWh/m2 Equipment: 20.95 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 39.24 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | 3.62 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 1.78 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 40% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
Innovative construction management techniques have been detailed within the Project Environmental Management Plan, the main aims and objectives are:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Dyffryn Aman is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of coherence with tortuous, external circulation routes. It was necessary to add new buildings but these are a small proportion of the overall work as it is more expensive to demolish and rebuild than to adapt.
New buildings have been provided to develop key resources for Special Educational Needs (Block 17) and to develop the Sixth Form along with providing new reception / administration areas to welcome visitors to the school (Block 18).
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.
Project Description:
The overall project is extending and adapting the existing school. The new changing room and P.E. block provided new changing facilities plus a new fitness suite with associated classroom.
BREEAM Rating and score:
The new changing rooms block is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. A score of 75.20% was scored during the Interim Assessment.
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost (£/ m2) | £1185 |
Services Costs (£/ m2) | £340 |
External Works (£/ m2) | £58,271.00 |
Gross floor area | 655m2 |
Total area of site | 2 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | Teaching areas: 205m2 Admin areas: 137m2 |
Area of circulation | 202m2 |
Area of storage | 34m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 6.2 kWh/m2 Equipment: 17 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 525 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | 165 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 4 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 0% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
Innovative construction management techniques have been detailed within the Project Environmental Management Plan, the main aims and objectives are:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Dyffryn Aman is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of coherence with tortuous, external circulation routes. It was necessary to add new buildings but these are a small proportion of the overall work as it is more expensive to demolish and rebuild than to adapt.
New buildings have been provided to develop key resources for Special Educational Needs (Block 17) and to develop the Sixth Form along with providing new reception / administration areas to welcome visitors to the school (Block 18).
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.
Project Description:
The project is extending the existing school through the construction of a new Art, Science and Technology Block.
BREEAM Rating and score:
The Block is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. A score of 75.10% was awarded during the Interim Assessment.
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost | £3,660,620 |
Services Costs | £1,297,470 |
External Works | £384,850 |
Gross floor area | 3100m2 |
Total area of site | 7.5 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | Teaching areas: 2000m2 Admin areas: 85m2 |
Area of circulation | 567m2 |
Area of storage | 220m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 12.28 kWh/m2 Equipment: 22.74 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 16.67 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | 6.23 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 3.66 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 0% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
Innovative construction management techniques have been detailed within the Project Environmental Management Plan, the main aims and objectives are:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Dyffryn Aman is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of coherence with tortuous, external circulation routes. It was necessary to add new buildings but these are a small proportion of the overall work as it is more expensive to demolish and rebuild than to adapt.
New buildings have been provided to develop key resources for Special Educational Needs (Block 17) and to develop the Sixth Form along with providing new reception / administration areas to welcome visitors to the school (Block 18).
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.
Project Description:
The project involves the Construction of a new Design and Technology Block (Block 21) and linkage to the existing school with associated external works.
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Ysgol Maes Y Gwendraeth is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of teaching space and external play facilities.
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
BREEAM Rating and score:
The new science and technology block is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. A score of 73.84% was scored during the Interim Assessment.
Below is a summary of the basic cost information for the project.
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost | £766 / m2 |
Services Costs | £443 / m2 |
External Works | £284 / m2 |
Gross floor area | 2572.6m2 |
Total area of site | 0.3757 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | Teaching areas - classrooms: 393.2m2 Laboratories: 402.7m2 Technology rooms: 770.9m2 Art rooms; 246.6m2 |
Area of circulation | 554.2m2 |
Area of storage | 38m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 12.43 kWh/m2 Equipment: 19.33 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 19.17 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | -4.88 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 3.42 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 0% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
Innovative construction management techniques have been detailed within the Project Environmental Management Plan, the main aims and objectives are:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
It was necessary to create a new building which demonstrates that Ysgol Maes Y Gwendraeth is a school for the 21st Century. The main problem with the existing buildings was a lack of teaching space and external play facilities.
After redevelopment, the school will be able to provide adequately sized, sufficient teaching and social spaces which are a pleasant place to work and learn. The school will be adapted with added facilities to ensure it is fully inclusive and helps every child.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
- Recycled aggregates for drainage works and over site hard core
- Dedicated areas for raised planters for pupils to create and manage organic planting
- Roosting boxes will be located around the site
- Hot water needs will be provided by solar thermal collectors
- Low Water demand sanitary installations
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.
Project Description:
Block 23 is a new sports hall extension to the existing Maes Y Gwendraeth School comprising sports hall, changing rooms, a classroom and staff office.
The Building aims to maintain a green building policy with passive solar design, natural ventilation and light. The building will also make use of energy gains from solar panels.
BREEAM Rating and score:
The new sports hall block is required to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. A score of 73% was scored during the Interim Assessment.
Below is a summary of the basic cost information for the project.
The key innovative and low-impact design features of the building are:
Feature(s) | Statistics / Figures / Measurements |
---|---|
Basic Building Cost | £766 / m2 |
Services Costs | £433 / m2 |
External Works | £284 / m2 |
Gross floor area | 1191m2 |
Total area of site | 0.166 hectares |
Function areas and their size (m2) | Teaching areas - classrooms: 52m2 Changing areas: 158m2 Sports Hall: 597m2 |
Area of circulation | 171m2 |
Area of storage | 78m2 |
% area of grounds to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
% area of buildings to be used by community (where relevant) | n/a |
Predicted electricity consumption | Lighting: 12.28 kWh/m2 Equipment: 20.83 kWh/m2 |
Predicted fossil fuel consumption | 237.26 kWh/m2 |
Predicted renewable energy generation | 10.92 kWh/m2 |
Predicted water use | 4.13 m3/ person/ year |
% predicted water use to be provided by rainwater or greywater | 0% |
The steps taken during the construction process to reduce environmental impacts:
- To eliminate pollutants
- To minimise impact of any flora, fauna and local inhabitants
- To reduce energy consumption
- To maximise the re-use and recycling of materials by adopting a Site Waste Management Plan
- Enforce a balanced cut and fill to ensure no earthworks materials were deposited to landfill
- To include environmental considerations in the selection of materials and components
- To promote environmental awareness amongst staff, sub-contractors and suppliers
- To accommodate any comments made following the further environmental assessments, any commitments agreed through discussions with local residents and/ or organisations.
- Employment opportunities prioritised for local community
- Managed approach to conversation of wildlife.
Social / economical sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
In addition to public and stakeholder consultations, a large amount of works was undertaken to engage the pupils and staff with the project to ensure that the school felt part of the whole project.
A list of any social or economically sustainable measures achieved/ piloted:
- Recycled aggregates for drainage works and over site hard core
- Dedicated areas for raised planters for pupils to create and manage organic planting
- Roosting boxes will be located around the site
- Hot water needs will be provided by solar thermal collectors
- Low Water demand sanitary installations
In addition to the above, the following have also been met:
- The first credit of Man6: Consultation (under BREEAM Education 2008) has been achieved;
- Building users have visited site during construction, including regular visits form school teachers and pupils.
- Building users and key stakeholders have attended Design Team meetings.