Currie Community High School

Procured through the Crown Commercial Services framework, the new build secondary school will create 1,000 student places, with facilities including three floors of teaching blocks, sports and leisure facilities including a swimming pool, a theatre, and a café. There will also be a community hub to provide a range of amenities to local people, including a library, outdoor informal play spaces, a sensory garden, and public allotments. The vast range of facilities are designed to encourage interaction between pupils and the local community, bringing socio-economic benefits to the local area whilst improving the ecology of the site.

The school will be built to Passivhaus standards. Passivhaus is a certified energy efficiency standard, focused on creating buildings that minimise energy consumption, therefore reducing the reliance on active heating or cooling systems, ensuring sustainable and eco-friendly construction. This is in line with The City of Edinburgh Council’s aim to ensure that all new build and refurbishment public building projects are sustainable, as part of their commitment to achieving zero emissions by 2030.

It is the third school to be built in Scotland to Passivhaus standards and expected to use 70% less energy when in operation compared to a traditionally built school. The school has been modelled to withstand predicted changes in climate conditions up to 2080.

Kier has a track record of delivering Passivhaus buildings, which focus on the five principles of insulation, heat controls, airtight construction, heat recovery ventilation and thermal bridge free design. 

As well as the Passivhaus design, Kier is implementing numerous other sustainable features into the construction of the new school to help The City of Edinburgh Council meet its sustainability commitments. These will include increased air quality, which will be delivered through controlled mechanical heating & ventilation, to ensure a more efficient and better-performing circulating system compared to the unpredictable use of naturally ventilated designs. The team will also focus on achieving thermal excellence through the use of high-quality insulation and triple glazed windows, ensuring the efficient energy performance of the building. These measures to improve the air quality and thermal performance of the building are vital to achieving Passivhaus certification. 

The project goes beyond the build and offers the opportunity for students to take their first step into the construction industry. Through Kier’s ‘Constructing Futures’ programme, a construction academy was opened on site, offering 15 pupils from Currie and the nearby Balerno High School employability skills and an insight into the construction industry.

This additional commitment has been supplemented by working with the City of Edinburgh Council to deliver social value tailored to the needs of the community, including employment opportunities, education engagement events and volunteering with local community groups.