£55 million contract awarded for renovation works at Trinity Academy
Belfast-based construction firm McLaughlin & Harvey has been contracted to build the extension to Trinity Academy in Leith, and refurbish an existing Victorian building.
Plans to renovate and expand the school have been ongoing for several years, with the first stage of the project – involving a new sports and recreation facility – opening in 2022.
A ward councillor has said she is 'really pleased' with the planned improvements, and that she looks forward to the public space on the site that will be open to the community.
A rendering of the new school | Image via City of Edinburgh Council A rendering of the new school | Image via City of Edinburgh Council
The expansion of Trinity Academy, which is fed by three primary schools, will expand its capacity from 950 to 1,200.
A planning application for the school's redevelopment was submitted by the council in October 2023.
The original red sandstone Victorian building at the western end of the school, built in 1894, will be retained, and undergo refurbishment.
Meanwhile, several of the other structures on the site, built after the original building, will be demolished
A new four-storey extension to the original building will be built in their place, with a red brick and metal exterior.
Both the extension and the sports facility have been designed by architecture firm Holmes Miller, which has designed several primary schools in the city.
Green councillor Kayleigh Kinross-O'Neill, who represents Forth ward, said: 'We're really pleased to see the next step of Trinity's expansion go ahead, as I know most parents and teachers are too.
'I'm especially looking forward to seeing the outdoor learning facilities and other wellbeing features that can be used by the wider community.'
The works will be carried out in phases in order to allow teaching to continue while works are underway.
A temporary teaching space will be built to the south of the school, first allowing the teaching in two of the newer buildings on the site to be moved there.
They will then be demolished, and the extension built in their place.
The teaching in the two demolished blocks will then be moved back into the extension, and the teaching in the Victorian-era building moved out for it to be refurbished.
Once the refurbishment is complete, all teaching will be returned to the new and refurbished parts of the site, and the three remaining buildings in the east of the site will be demolished, to be replaced with an outdoor space.
The outdoor design at the site will integrate Trinity Academy's grounds with that of Trinity Primary, creating a unified campus within the community.
The open space would be open to the public, and feature outdoor teaching areas.
Passivhaus standards were used in the design of the extension, which aim to keep the temperature of buildings comfortable while using as little energy as possible.
Builders McLaughlin & Harvey were also contracted to build the Wester Hailes High School, which is set to be completed in late 2026.
Elsewhere in the city, they have built several structures for the University of Edinburgh, including the Nucleus student hub and a new building for the School of Engineering at the university's King's Buildings site.
Between 2018 and 2022, the firm's waste subsidiary was locked in a legal battle with Revenue Scotland over landfill taxes.
Barr Environmental Ltd operated two landfills in Scotland, including one in Ayrshire, as well as a plant to recycle waste.
In 2021, Revenue Scotland slapped the firm with a £99m fine, saying it had wrongfully not paid landfill tax on materials recycled from the Ayrshire landfill to build walls on site.
The company said that, because the materials were recycled, they should be exempt from the landfill tax.
Recycling waste through their recycling plant was part of the firm's business model in the waste processing space, with the hope it would drive costs down for its local authority clients.
A lower tribunal found against the firm, but Barr appealed to the Upper Tribunal and won, with a tribunal judge saying that 'there is nothing wrong with principle' with what the company did.
Barr no longer operates waste facilities in Scotland, having pulled out of the sector ahead of the impending landfill ban.
The contract was closed on 19 March and published on 27 June.
By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter
Like this:
Like
Related
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC News
26 minutes ago
- NBC News
Getting to Europe is cheaper this summer — but everything costs more when you're there
Indeed, Tourism Economics found travel spending by U.S. residents abroad rose 8.6% in the first four months of the year from the same period a year earlier. 'This indicates continued U.S. outbound demand,' the firm said. While the economy and household finances always influence travel demand, 'today those factors are looking to have more of a negative impact than positive one,' said Nicki Zink, deputy head of industry analysis at the market research firm Morning Consult. In the group's recent survey, 31% of consumers said both the state of the U.S. economy and personal financial pressures are reducing their interest in leisure travel in the next three months, 'higher than any other factor we survey about,' said Zink. For its own part, the tourism market research firm Future Partners found 47% of American travelers are likely to venture abroad in the next 12 months, but 35% said uncertainty around U.S. policy changes had already caused them to reconsider or delay those plans. And in a NerdWallet survey last month, 11% of consumers said they'd scrapped international travel plans this year over global relations or economic uncertainty. Plenty of Americans are still packing their passports, though. Millennials, for example, 'are increasingly considering international destinations, despite the higher cost compared with domestic trips,' said Zink, adding that interest in destinations across South and Central America, the Caribbean and northern Europe have risen this year. Wealthy travelers are also still traveling with gusto, extending a trend that has intensified since the recovery from the pandemic. 'Our affluent clients are still going after those bucket-list adventures and once-in-a-lifetime experiences,' said Mandee Migliaccio, CEO of the New Jersey-based agency Stepping Out Travel Services. 'While they're definitely keeping an eye on the headlines, they typically won't change plans unless a destination really becomes unstable.' Migliaccio acknowledged she has seen some subtle shifts lately, with some clients asking to trim flight costs or deciding to skip a stop to keep things more efficient. 'It's not so much 'I can't go' as it is, 'How can I make this work for me?'' she said. 'People are being strategic, spending where it matters most, and opting for curated experiences over excess.'
Daily Record
4 hours ago
- Daily Record
Couple who spent £550k on former bank to convert to home refused council permission
Pat Sharp and her husband Nigel hoped to turn into their dream retirement home but it has turned into a planning nightmare. A couple who spent over £550,000 converting a former bank into their dream retirement home say they've never been allowed to move in, due to years of planning setbacks. Pat Sharp and her husband Nigel bought the disused Royal Bank of Scotland building in Westgate, North Berwick, seven years ago, after Nigel was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. The pair hoped to create a wheelchair-accessible home as their flat above a Victorian house became less suitable. They paid more than double the £250,000 asking price, £555,555, despite the building lacking planning permission for residential use. "Twelve other people wanted it too, most of them aiming to turn it into a house," said Pat. "However I was the top offer at £555,555. The offers over price was obviously to attract attention and was no way realistic." However, East Lothian Council refused change of use, insisting the property must remain commercial. The couple uncovered an old photo, found by their architect Andrew Megginson, showing the building - formerly Park House - had once been residential, with gardens, a conservatory, and garages. 'This makes it clear that what we now own was historically more than half residential,' Pat said. 'RBS retained the drawing room, and sold the remaining house to the bank manager, where his daughter and family lived. It is in the middle of period properties, well set back - even further than its neighbours.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. The delays have had a deep personal cost. The couple were unable to use the home to host their young granddaughters, now aged two and three, whose mother, Pat's daughter, died of cancer. "I could turn the bank into a future proof home with a lift and easy wheelchair access, and making it a fun place for the girls to visit," said Pat. The couple originally proposed a design in keeping with the area's heritage. "One of the three councillors loved our plans for a beautiful quality house," said Pat. "The other two said it was a pastiche, and a modern house was required - not my choice but Andrew designed one. Again, to our astonishment, they knocked it back. Then they changed their view to 'North Berwick needs offices' and now this has continued for years." Nigel's condition has since worsened, and he has moved into a care home. Though permission was later granted for a café and offices, Pat said: "A modern office block at the end of a graceful terrace of Victorian villas? After more than 83 viewings we have demonstrated completely there is no appetite whatsoever for any commercial enterprise there - even less so with the new parking laws about to be inflicted on North Berwick." "We have repeatedly asked the council for a meeting to find a way to progress, which is our right," she added. A final appeal set for June 19 was postponed due to a notification error. "The Council's recent postponement at the 11th hour of our local review does not surprise us," Pat said. 'If we at last get our planning permission I regard it as a win for beautiful North Berwick. We're just passing through. Let our legacy be one of carefully conserving what we've inherited. Not building more carbuncles." A council spokesperson said the appeal would now be heard in August.
Rhyl Journal
4 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
Rhyl property used as homeless accommodation set for auction
48 River Street (The Cove Guest House) is to be auctioned 'on behalf of the administrators' by Liverpool-based estate agents Sutton Kersh on Thursday, July 24. It is owned by Big Help Homes CIC, who bought the property in February 2021 for £245,000 – for the July 24 auction, a guide price of £150,000 has been set. Big Help Homes CIC went into administration in March – its latest accounts show that, as of January 30, 2024, its liabilities exceeded its assets by £504,291. Last October, Big Help Homes CIC was the subject of a winding-up petition sent to the High Court. Its administrators, Grant Thornton, said in an administrator's proposal that Big Help Homes CIC was leased 18 properties by another company, Home Long Income Fund (HLIF), but had 'not paid rent to HLIF for some time'. It also claimed in this proposal that Big Help Homes CIC owes a total of £8.8million to its creditors. Two of its former directors, Peter Mitchell and his partner Colette Goulding, were declared bankrupt in May. Another 'Big Help' company, Big Help Project, is currently subject to a Charity Commission inquiry after a significant increase in its reported income was identified. Last July, 48 River Street was one of seven Rhyl properties listed for online auction with estate agents Allsop 'by order of a charity', but none of the relevant legal documents were attached to their auction pages. When contacted, Allsop could not disclose why they were subsequently withdrawn from auction. Then, in August, three of these properties – including 48 River Street – were put back up for auction via Sutton Kersh. No legal documents were attached to these properties' auction pages on this occasion, either. On August 29, all three properties' auctions, scheduled for September 10, were postponed. On September 2, a Sutton Kersh representative said they were pulled from auction because it didn't have 'formal instruction' for them. 48 River Street was also the registered address of another "Big Help" company, Big Help Holiday Homes Ltd, prior to this company being dissolved last year. Sutton Kersh describes 48 River Street as a 'vacant three-storey detached property which has previously been used as a 13-bedroomed guesthouse'. It added: 'Following refurbishment and modernisation, the property would be suitable for investment purposes or potential flat conversation, subject to gaining any necessary consents.'
