Discovery Special Academy

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Client

Discovery Special Academy

Building Use

Secondary education

Project Duration

11 months

Procurement Method

Buy

Why buy from Portakabin

Project Features

  • External cladding to match existing school design
  • Connecting canopy
  • Specialised sensory and therapy rooms
  • Glazed vision panels

  1. Requirement

    With Discovery Special Academy secondary students placed in temporary accommodation at another site within the trust, Tees Valley Education required a new bespoke teaching department on the site of its existing primary academy in Middlesbrough. The building would be home to 70 new secondary students aged 11-16 with special educational needs and disabilities. It was essential that the new secondary department not only linked to the existing primary and nursery facilities, but aesthetically matched with the use of external cladding.

  2. Solution

    Portakabin was able to work with TVED colleagues to design and deliver a new provision that will allow all students, carers, and teaching staff of Discovery Special Academy to be located on one site, creating a through school. Comprising eight dedicated SEND teaching classrooms and shared teaching spaces, the new academy building also features a music and drama room, art classrooms and food tech rooms, as well as a hall and a specialised area for sensory integration therapy. Discovery Special Academy also has new car parking provisions for visitors and staff, alongside multiple mini-bus bays, and a dedicated ambulance bay. 

When we started this project with Portakabin, we were entering into a new world of construction and learning about MMC. We needed a company who could design and deliver a bespoke, high-quality building to serve the academic and therapeutic needs of our growing academy community in a tight timescale. And I am delighted that we found Portakabin. It is a privilege to have been part of such a dedicated team who listened, and who understood the needs of the clients.

Jennifer Duncan, Deputy CEO and Executive Head Teacher, Discovery Special Academy and SEND