Burry Port School pioneers Brettstapel and aims for Passivhaus

The £3.8m scheme at Burry Port Community Primary School unites the town’s infant and junior schools, accommodating a total of 210 pupils and a 30-space nursery class on the existing Elkington Road site.

The extended block has been designed by PHT Patron members Architype and is set to achieve Passivhaus Certification. The new building comprises of four new classrooms, as well as two further teaching spaces, staff and meeting room facilities.

The original school building has been refurbished, with spaces rationalised and a number of environmental defects resolved. Sitting between the new and old buildings, a dynamic multi-use ‘pod’ building offers group recreation and performance space, and is an important statement of the school's commitment to sustainability.

Besides the Passivhaus credentials, this exemplar project has taken sustainability a step further, with both new buildings specified entirely in Welsh timber. The stand-alone elliptical pod building is the focal point of this and marks the first Brettstapel school building in the UK.