The lasting impact of St John Bosco Arts College’s £18 million building

Across England in the early 2000s, the government launched the Building Schools for the Future programme (BSF). The programme provided funding for the construction of entirely new schools and colleges, as well as rebuilding existing ones and providing ICT funding to non-BSF, new-build schools.

St John Bosco Arts College, situated in the heart of Croxteth, was originally set to receive a newly built school building under the programme after undergoing a tortuous and expensive bidding process. The school was ready to spend a whopping £20 million on new premises before then education secretary, Michael Gove, pulled the plug on the BSF programme.

The school faced the challenge of starting afresh with a significantly lower budget than under the BSF. Headteacher at the time, Anne Pontifex, said: “I never thought that I would thank Michael Gove, but even though we had more money under the BSF, we have a better building now.”

As part of the original scope, the school had a budget of just £1,191/m² for all building elements, including prelims, overhead profit (OHP) and five per cent contingency. With a total construction cost of £16.5 million, the result was an impressive 91m x 55m three-story, single-span, column-free learning environment containing an exciting mixture of open-plan, cellular learning and social spaces centred around a sculpted landscape.

Multi-functional, transformational and inspirational spaces were a core part of the original brief as the school was keen for greater flexibility in learning and social spaces across the site.

Another important ‘must-have’ for St John Bosco Arts College was a space that fostered a sense of cohesion, community and togetherness, where staff and students alike could share communal spaces.

Long-term sustainability, efficiency and the use of hard-wearing materials were a priority in enabling the school to minimise future costs and funnel money saved into educational experiences for students.

Architect director, Mark Braund, head of BDP’s Liverpool Studio and lead architect on the project, reflects on the building 10 years on and shares his thoughts on how the school has evolved from the initial concept.

Mark said: “One of the most important factors during the design of the building was to make sure the money available for the project went as far as possible and was spent on the spaces that really count for the pupils and teachers – we wanted to deliver more for less. Using an industrial shed style building approach meant we could maximise the budget for internal elements and

“Whilst the building is a big-shed style structure, the design is bespoke for the needs of St John Bosco, and centred around a central multi-functional atrium space where the industrial-style structure and an artificial landscape meet to create a harmonious space, where the whole school can be seen in a single glance.”

Cost efficiency was one of the main goals of the development, so the challenge for the architectural team was creating a building engineered for efficiency that inspired students and staff but would also adapt to the evolving needs of the school.

Mark added: “We considered light, noise, and movement carefully, to make sure it didn’t just look good, but also worked for the school – identifying the flow of the pupils, and how each space would be used over time. The building’s facade was purposefully designed to maximise windows to the classrooms with a view and minimise them to the south to reduce constant sunlight and heat which meant we could save costs of mechanical and electrical equipment internally.

“Over the last 10 years, St John Bosco Arts College has naturally evolved as a school and the building has intuitively evolved with us.

“The roof acts as a huge acoustic absorber to absorb the noise during lesson changes and busy periods throughout the school day.

“The meticulous placement of classrooms across the building was selected to significantly reduce the travel time between rooms, ultimately meaning longer can be spent in lessons in learning.”

This year, the 1,100 place girls’ school celebrated the building’s 10th anniversary, but has the new-build secondary had the desired impact a decade on?

Mark shared how he has since visited the school on multiple occasions and is still ‘humbled’ by the project.

“I have visited the school many times and am incredibly humbled at how 10 years on, the school is still evolving but the core concept remains unchanged.

“We had an excellent client relationship with St John Bosco, and this was fundamental to the success of the project, and despite it being a decade since the development, staff and students are still embracing the building’s unique design and making it adaptable to their changing needs,” Mark commented.

Headteacher, Mr Darren Gidman, shared: “School buildings and learning environments are an integral part of every child’s educational journey; they should inspire curiosity, foster collaboration, and be a source of pride and practicality.

“Over the last 10 years, St John Bosco Arts College has naturally evolved as a school and the building has intuitively evolved with us. The multi-functional spaces have transformed into what we have needed them to be.”

At the heart of the £18 million building sits ‘The Hill’, a functional central space where formal and social events overlap. The space encompasses an auditorium, a refectory, a library, rooms for students with special needs, Mr Gidman’s office, and administrative rooms.

Mr Gidman added: “The circular flow of the school has increased social interactions across all year groups and improved relationship building between students and teaching staff. Everything and everyone are under the one roof.”

The headteacher also noted how the 15 per cent of added space has improved educational experiences for students. The introduction of breakout spaces outside the classrooms has boosted the capacity for group activities and provides designated private study areas for revision sessions.

The new classroom layouts have decreased travel time between lessons and allowed more time to be spent on learning.

“A good school is driven by its educational vision and ethos. The role of the building is to facilitate and embody this through clever design, teaching spaces, and common areas. The environment our students learn and our staff teach in can have a huge impact on their overall happiness and willingness to learn and work.

“The building was engineered for efficiency with the ambition of enabling us to use money towards educational experiences. The maintenance of the building has been manageable with a significantly lower amount of money spent on repairs,” Mr Gidman shared.

Nestled in a residential area, from first glance, St John Bosco Arts College presents as a large metal structure, but what awaits inside is a vibrant, harmonious and functional learning environment that challenges design norms and uses advanced technology in a simple but efficient way.