MAGPLY BOARDS SHEATH STRUCTURE TO STRATFORD’S SUGAR HOUSE ISLAND SCHOOL

A vital new community school at the heart of an urban regeneration project in East London is making full use of the strength and stability to Magply MgO boards which carry a full set of internationally recognised accreditations, including BDA certification and which are widely specified for their excellent fire performance.

The new Sugar House Island Primary School in Stratford is a BIM Level 2 project involving Mid Group as main contractor delivering the project for Vastint UK. To date, four full pallets of the 12mm version of the Magply boards have been delivered.

The Project Supervisor for Openwood Facades, Sam Crockett, commented: “We work across a variety of sectors including education, from our premises in Wickford, providing clients with cladding, curtain wall and window solutions. In the case of the Sugar House Island Primary School, we are responsible for the entire window and curtain wall package – featuring our Aluprof system.

These are being constructed with a ventilated cavity using Ancon brackets to tie them back through the Magply boards to the main concrete structure. Although we have used small quantities of Magply before on other jobs, this is our first major project featuring them and we are finding them very straightforward to cut and fix. IPP is actually located not far from our factory, so there is every likelihood we will be using them more in the future.”

With the design of the school presenting a few technical challenges IPP provided Openwood Façades’ project team with all relevant information and advice, including performance, testing and fixing requirements.

Magply offers a fire-safe and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional plywood or OSB products. Additionally, the unique production process keeps the chloride content to just 0.01^%, enhancing both stability and long-term durability. The different thickness of panels is also widely used as a substrate board for the direct application of proprietary render systems, as well as for flooring and flat or pitched roof build-ups.

Planning permission was granted by LLDC for a two-form entry school offering a capacity of 440 pupil places, to be operated by the Big Education Trust which is a welcome boost for families in the borough where there is high demand for school places.

The school is being built as the next phase of Sugar House Island – a new, mixed-use development, which has been carefully curated by real estate developer Vastint UK to redevelop an existing brownfield site.

The school will offer high quality teaching following the ‘Head, Heart and Hands’ teaching pedagogy in a welcoming environment, featuring a roof top play space including MUGA pitch and external teaching area. Key features of the build include oracy stairs, break out spaces, flexible classroom teaching spaces, musical walk play-area, green outdoor classroom and a Forest School for outdoor teaching.