THE BUILDING PROCESS

Part 3 looks at the building process and considers the issues that are critical to securing facilities that are fit for their purpose, well designed and provide value for money Ð now and in the foreseeable future.

Consultation and co-operation are key factors in achieving these objectives. This is true for all stages of the process, for example:
• Users should be consulted throughout the project;
• The brief should be developed jointly by all interested parties;
• All parties should work as a team towards a common goal.

The success of a school building project also depends on time and effort spent on investigation and analysis in the early stages of its development. The key issues are:
• Careful assessment of need;
• Consideration of a number of design options;
• Cost planning;
• Programming.

A 'design champion' in the Local Authority can help encourage design quality in schools' building projects. After the project is over, post-project evaluation is important in order to inform the development of future projects.

Further information on the above issues is set out in Sections 3.2 to 3.8. These sections are organised to broadly follow the main stages in the development of a building project. Section 3.1 outlines two recent initiatives, Asset Management Planning and Rethinking Construction, which set the context for school building projects now and in the future.

3.1 Setting the context
3.2 Consultation
3.3 Brief or output specification
3.4 Feasibility studies and option appraisals
3.5 Cost planning
3.6 Building procurement
3.7 Programming
3.8 Evaluation