Passivhaus Schools & Educational Buildings

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In February 2012, Oakmeadow Primary School & Bushbury Primary School in Wolverhampton, and Montgomery Primary School in Exeter, became the first UK schools built and certified to Passivhaus Standard. Since then, there have been several certified Passivhaus schools built in the UK, constructed from a range of materials and budgets.

Oakmeadow Primary School, Architype ©Leigh Simpson

Key Stats

There are 17 UK certified Passivhaus schools in total.
There are 13 certified Passivhaus schools in England, 2 nursery schools in Scotland, and 2 primary school in Wales.
The first UK schools to meet the Passivhaus standard were Oakmeadow Primary School, Bushbury Hill Primary School and Montgomery Primary School, all certified in February 2012.
There are 28 UK Passivhaus certified educational buildings, including schools, colleges, and University buildings.
The University of Leicester, Centre for Medicine is currently the largest commercial Passivhaus in the UK.

NB – The above stats are correct for certified Passivhaus schools, to the Trust’s knowledge at October 2022. Whilst we endeavour to keep a thorough record of all UK certified Passivhaus schemes, if we are not informed of a project, or it is not fully certified, it may not be on our database.

Passivhaus Schools

Other Education & Learning Facilities

There are also a number of other UK educational projects that cater for higher education & research:

In the pipeline

There are many other schools and educational schemes under construction or awaiting Passivhaus certification, we have a handful of the projects listed below:

Currie Community High School - Edinburgh, Scotland
St. Sophia's Primary School - East Ayrshire, Scotland
Trinity Academy High School - Edinburgh, Scotland
Sciennes Primary School - Edinburgh, Scotland
Perth High School - Perth and Kinross, Scotland
Maybury Primary School & Health Centre - Edinburgh, Scotland
Ardrossan Community Campus - North Ayrshire, Scotland
Buntingford First School - Hertfordshire
Montgomerie Park Primary School - North Ayrshire, Scotland
Frenchay Church of England Primary School - Bristol
Trent View College - Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire
Wednesfield Primary School - Wolverhampton, West Midlands
Mulberry Academy London Dock - London
Bro Hyddgen School - Machynlleth, Wales
The Spencer Building Library - Oxford

Post Occupancy Evaluation

PHT Patron Member Architype, have conducted a post occupancy data monitoring on a number of their school projects. The data proves that pupils’ concentration levels benefit from the superior indoor air quality and thermal comfort a Passivhaus provides. Controlled and maintained CO₂ levels help the children stay alert and attentive throughout the day. Running and maintenance costs are slashed, as the building requires nominal energy to heat or cool.

Architype schools: Summer CO2 concentration levels

If you have an educational Passivhaus project under construction or nearing certification – please let us know by completing and returning the project information request form to:info@passivhaustrust.org.uk

Further Information

Passivhaus for Educational Buildings Campaign

UK Passivhaus Certified Projects Map

Previous PHT story: Councils Can: Exemplar Local Plans & policies - 1 May 2023

Previous PHT story: Super-sized Scottish campus targets Passivhaus - 22 November 2022

Previous PHT story: Scottish Schools lead large scale Passivhaus - 8 April 2022

What is Passivhaus

Passivhaus Student Competition

Large & Complex Passivhaus Masterclass 2024

Passivhaus for Local Authorities

How to build a Passivhaus (and other guides)

Passivhaus Benefits Guide & costs research