Delivering Innovation
This community scheme was designed to convert Australia Road into an environmentally conscious pedestrian space, as well as improving safety for school children. The project was based around an innovative SUDS drainage scheme with permeable paving to divert water into four bespoke rain gardens and planted areas.
The scope of works was completed during a 30-week construction period and included:
- Hard landscaping to create new pathways & roads and paved areas
- Extensive soft landscaping and planting
- Concrete works to create feature walls
- Bespoke architectural steelwork around school entrance
- Gates and fencing
- Pavement reconstruction and recycling of waste
- Three new timber bridges
- Phased construction
The new construction consisted of SUDS drainage under 2000m2 of new Tegula Paving with the water run off diverted into four No Rain gardens and several planting areas. Plus, a 250lm wiggly wall feature was retained in the paving and in the walking wall across the rain gardens. These curved shaped wall features, traditional for this area, were retained by introducing curved kerbs.
The wiggly wall and rain garden walls were stone clad reinforced concrete, with coloured concrete for the visible areas. In addition, there were three timber bridges running across the rain gardens to allow free movement in the area.
Specialist features also included innovative Flashrust steel structures to carry water from the school guttering and divert it down spiralling stainless-steel chains and into the rain gardens. The rain gardens were then topsoiled and planted with trees and plants to the correct specifications.
To round the project off, new fencing and gates, including new access to the adjacent park, were also installed to the area, but the team ensured they matched the design and style of others already in the area.
As a result, the old roadway is now a safe green space area which allows access only into the school car park and for deliveries with bollards deterring any through traffic use.