Orchardside School

ARCHITECT

BHP Architects

DETAIL

Cooper8 were commissioned to design and deliver the kitchen facilities for Orchardside School, a modern Secondary Tuition Centre (STC) that combines several smaller facilities across the borough into one purpose-built space. The school, designed by BHP Architects with services by KUT Engineers and Conisbee Drainage Engineers, caters to 100 pupils and 50 staff, offering an array of specialist facilities including food technology classrooms, music and drama rooms with a recording studio, scientific laboratories, and a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA) for a variety of sports.

Cooper8’s involvement included designing, specifying, and tendering the school kitchen to ensure it aligned with the spatial allocations provided by the architects. The team provided preliminary services information, such as extraction rates, electrical diversity, and water consumption, to facilitate the seamless integration of the kitchen into the overall building design.

A key milestone in the project was Cooper8 tendering for the catering operator, which was awarded to independent caterer Edwards and Ward, who have successfully managed the catering operation ever since.

Cooper8’s approach ensured the Orchardside kitchen was not only operationally efficient but also complemented the modern educational facilities of this state-of-the-art school.