click images to see a slideshow

Built in the 1970s, Trinity Catholic School in Woodford Green, Essex accommodates around 1,700 pupils on two sites. During the summer of 2009, the first phase of a major refurbishment programme was undertaken, which saw half of the buildings of the lower school site transformed, with new windows and doors fitted, in addition to a completely new brick façade, thanks to the installation of the Gebrik insulating brick cladding system.

The architects original intention was to simply replace the windows and doors to improve the thermal performance of the building; however once Gebrik had been proposed he realised it would provide the perfect solution to improve the entire fabric of the building, whilst maintaining a robust natural brick finish in keeping with the local vernacular. Fixed directly to the original brick substrate, the Gebrik system delivered an immediate aesthetic transformation, bringing new life to tired buildings, and reducing the U-value by almost 50% to 0.267W/m²K. This created an improved working environment for the staff and pupils, an improved carbon footprint for each of the buildings, with the inherent reduction in fuel bills, and none of the problems associated with traditional brickwork, such as speed of construction, weather dependency and site conditions.

Using Gebrik, the whole cladding refurbishment programme was completed in just twelve weeks and remained on track despite a particularly wet summer and poor site conditions. With the vast majority of the work undertaken during the summer holiday, work during term time was limited to just two weeks either side of the recess, ensuring that any disruption to normal school activities was kept to an absolute minimum.

Please click on any of the images on the right to view a slideshow showing aspects of the application and results of Gebrik used at the Trinity School development. A pdf case study detailing the whole development can be viewed & downloaded from the ‘Resource’ area on the far right.

• Client: Trinity Catholic High School
• Architect: The David Rackham Partnership
• Main Contractor: ECL Contracts Ltd
• Installation Contractor: ECL Contracts Ltd