Archive for NEEPS North East Eco-friendly People's Site          NEEPS Forum Index -> Green Building tommyscot Alford's New School Build I'd like to invite comment on the seemingly prescriptive attitude adopted by the council as they plan the new community school. The architects have been selected. the site almost certainly decided. My view is that the council could do more to promote healthy debate about what the school will be like. Will it be a beacon of sustainable design? Will future generations point it out to their grandchildren and proudly tell of their luck in being educated there? Or will we make do with a functional box? Have you been consulted? The opportunity to influence the plans is short and has already begun. There are schools on mainland europe that have a tiny energy consumption. Some even generate more than they use. None have yet been built in Scotland.  We have a golden opportunity to see an iconic school in Alford, that embraces the best of form and function. I feel that our aspirations are not being encouraged. Where is the invite to offer ideas? Our community deserves a school that reflects our aspirations, not necessarily the same as our council's. What do you think? Maria If i lived Alford way - i'd be voting a big fat yes!! Hope you manage to spread the word throughout your community and get some say in the build. Talking of voting - i'd better scoot before the polling station closes.   andybebbington [quote="Maria" Talking of voting - i'd better scoot before the polling station closes.  [/quote] thanks for the reminder me off aswell wildgarlic I voted yes - my son goes to the academy and yet I've not been consulted.  I've just had a look on the council website and can't see anything about this. Who do we need to contact to 'have our say'? tommyscot wildgarlic wrote: I voted yes - my son goes to the academy and yet I've not been consulted.  I've just had a look on the council website and can't see anything about this. Who do we need to contact to 'have our say'? The fact is thet there has not been a consultation mechanism set up- yet the design and planning period has begun (!). Cllr Richard Stroud is the Chair of the Education, Learning and Leisure Committee. Perhaps he would welcome your comment. cllr.r.stroud@aberdeenshire.gov.uk Maria Never said and would have done if i wasn't in such a rush earlier.....  to Neeps - great to have you around. Please let us know how things go with this...and any other 'green' stuff you come across. bracken school I work in one of these buildings but I wasn't around when the plans were in their infancy. I think that the Council has very little say over what the final building will be like either that or they don't quite know what they want and just go with what the builders present...... Consequently you will find very similar space ship type buildings dotted around communitites that don't tie in with the surroundings. Working inside one for the last three or four years I doubt if it will be around as long as the granite built building that they tore down to replace. In high winds the roof rattles alarmingly!!! The local community fought long and hard to keep the old building but the experts reckoned it would be too expensive to update...... Also, in our case (and probably every case) , the building does not belong to the Council and is leased to them. We find this quite restrictive as they make all the ground rules and there is a constant battle to claw back 'rent money' if any of the services fail - i.e if the temperature isn't 'correct' etc... It's a minefield! David http://www.buildgreenschools.org/gs101/        NEEPS Forum Index -> Green Building Page 1 of 1