If you would like to discuss any of your New School Design or BSF needs please contact Steve.Davies@Cocentra.com or phone 0845 009 4030 or 07917 080203 

New School Design

Whilst New School Design is a core element of BSF and other new build programmes, it is vital that educational imperatives and effective building designs and ICT solutions are delivered as an integrated solution.

Cocentra have developed a range of innovative services which combine best practice in Teaching & Learning within an inspirational design context, deploying cultural and change management techniques to ensure that all key stakeholders gain the maximum benefit from their new environments.

Successes           Overseas - New School Design - Dubai

        BSF - Public sector

                  BSF - Private sector

                 

Services              Local Authorities 

                  Private Sector

                  Teaching & Learning

                  Building Schools for the Future

 

Partnership         clarus consulting 

Recent Successes

Overseas - New School Design - Dubai

Kings College Dubai

Cocentra are delighted to announce that the plans to build Kings College in Dubai have been approved in January 2008. Kings is the first of a number of new schools to be built in the Middle East with Cocentra developing proposals for a new 2 to 19 International school in Dubai, the Kings College, which have been accepted by the Education department. We will now work with Penoyre and Prasad, the appointed architects, to develop the design brief and support the building and staffing of the school. The owners of the school are looking to expand this programme to involve a further 4 to 5 schools over the next 2 years.

'The team achieved a remarkable level of joint understanding of the corporate needs of the school' David Flynn, New England Association of Schools and Colleges & Brian Howes, Council of International Schools.

Singapore

Cocentra are providing New School Design support in Singapore for Babcock and Brown, involving the design and build of 5 PFI secondary schools.

We are actively extending our international presence further afield, building on the considerable experience of our team and success in Denmark, Holland and China.

Recent Successes

BSF - Public Sector

Cocentra continues to build upon its success in working with Local Authorities.

Staffordshire County Council January 2008

Cocentra's success in helping Staffordshire to develop its BSF programme has led to our involvement being extended up to December 2008, supporting them in:

• further developing their Strategy for Change
• ICT Workstream
• transforming learning
• estates, communities and Primary Capital
• consulting with all stakeholders

Bedfordshire County Council December 2007

We are delighted to have recently won the contract to provide support for Bedfordshire's BSF programme which covers the preparation of the Strategy for Change, Outline Business Case and the procurement of a Local Education Partner.

Ealing Schools - February 2008

Cocentra have provided considerable support for the BSF visioning process for Ealing Schools. 

Recent Successes

BSF - Private Sector 

Cocentra continues to enjoy considerable success in supporting private sector consortia bids under the BSF programme. In addition to regularly winning through to ITPD, we have reached ITCD in each of the 5 bids registered since January 2007 that we have been involved in.

Recent ITCD successes include Derbyshire with Equitix, Birmingham with GallifordTry and North Lincolnshire with Clugston Civica. We have reached ITSFT in Barnsley with Laing O'Rourke and are at ITPD on Luton with Equitix.

Other notable BSF private sector successes

Southend on Sea Borough Council - Belfairs High School

Cocentra provided support with education visioning, stakeholder consultation and the preparation of an architect's design brief, culminating in the development of a change management plan for the One School Pathfinder project

Leicester City Council - BSF

In 2007 Cocentra achieved the notable success of acting as Education Adviser to the Miller Consortium who were awarded Preferred Bidder status

Knowsley - BSF

Cocentra supported Balfour Beatty in winning Preferred Bidder status

'Our unique mix of educational and private sector business experience enables Cocentra to act as a well informed interface between parties who share common goals but occasionally see them from different perspectives. By challenging constructively and robustly we can help to develop solutions which balance pedagogical and commerical imperatives'. Steve Davies, Cocentra 

Services - Local Authorities

Cocentra supports LAs by:

• helping create an outstanding local vision and Strategy for Change
• supporting the development of the LEP, or providing direct operational involvement
• providing educational focus when dealings with construction companies, ICT providers and other key private sector suppliers
• providing creative input on key BSF themes, including design of teaching spaces with flexibility for a changing curriculum; responsiveness to developments in ICT; characteristics of inclusive schools; design of social spaces contributing to improved behaviour; assessment of contribution of proposed education schemes
• supplying educational professionals such as Head Teachers, Project Managers and Advisers to provide strategic support to LA BSF teams to deal with programme creation, management and procurement
• eliciting stakeholder feedback; summarising key findings; developing and delivering change management programmes
• assessing current situation including standards of pupil attainment; weak or failing schools; strength of leadership at LA and school level; curriculum strengths and weaknesses; condition and suitability of school buildings; provision of secondary schooling and its location; demographics; inclusion and equality issues; SEN; sixth form provision; provision of ICT
• considering key policies as they relate to school improvement and raising levels of pupil attainment including 14-19 agenda; specialist provision; diversity; pupil places; parental choice; academies; federations; pupil behaviour and attendance;
  school workforce remodelling; extended, full service and community use

 Services - Private Sector

Cocentra supports the private sector by:

• providing Educational Advisory support through the various bid stages from PQQ, ITPD/ITCD, ITSFT through to achieving Preferred Bidder status; evaluating education components of bids and testing for consistency of message
• supporting consortia beyond the Preferred Bidder stage and into the construction phase, interpreting education visions and helping to create schedules of accommodation
• having considerable experience in dealing with the needs of a wide variety of private sector suppliers and contractors including working closely with representatives of construction, design, ICT, logistics and facilities management companies
• helping to create and test outstanding local education vision and business case
• supporting the development of the LEP, or taking direct operational involvement
• providing input on local economic and social regeneration; third party income; stakeholder consultation

Services - Teaching & Learning

Cocentra ensures that education is at the heart of New School Design solutions through:

• An absolute focus on education transformation through capital investment in school infrastructure, helping Local Authorities deliver a world-class standard of education and enabling today's students to achieve their potential in tomorrow's world
• Ensuring new environments inspire and support both teachers and pupils, deploying innovative thinking, delivering personalised learning
• Providing solutions that reflect the aspirations and needs of not just the whole school estate but all stakeholders - meeting the needs of local people, the wider community, employers and community groups
• Working with LAs to facilitate collaboration amongst schools; enabling Primary Schools to make use of facilities in Secondary Schools; working with ICT partners to ensure technology is integral to teaching and learning and not treated just as an ‘add-on'
• First class working environments should be created for pupils and staff
• Facilitating Community and out-of-hours teaching and learning, enabling it to play a far more important role in school life
• Supporting design solutions that will cater for the full range of 14-19 curriculum opportunities, with their increasingly personalised solutions.
• Providing leadership through exciting and innovative approaches to partnering.

Services - Building Schools for the Future

In January 2006 Partnership for Schools launched the Educational Advisory Services Framework and Cocentra is delighted to have been successful in being appointed to this framework.  Since then the BSF programme has evolved through the steep learning curve of the early waves, with specific requirements and emphasis subtly changing and the target audience becoming far more aware of critical success factors.

Cocentra have gained significant experience since the inception of the BSF programme and are experiencing increasing demand for our highly personalised and wide ranging education advisory services.  

Partnership with clarus consulting

Cocentra have worked alongside clarus consulting since 2006 and by combining our education expertise with their project management skills we have secured significant contracts in both the public and private sectors in particular under the BSF programme. By offering complementary services we can offer seamless support to Local Authorities from the inception of their BSF process through to delivery.

As partners, both companies have exhibited at the BSEC 2007 conference in Harrogate and submitted many joint tenders. We continue to explore opportunities both in the UK and internationally, where Clarus' project management skills complement Cocentra's education transformation expertise.

If you would like to discuss any of your New School Design or BSF needs please contact Steve.Davies@cocentra.com or phone 0845 009 4030 or 07917 080203