CIF Funding Put To Work At Chatham Grammar School, In Kent.
As a practice, there are few things more satisfying than when a client, for whom we’ve secured a successful bid application, gets to put that hard-earned capital to use in their school. That’s been the case at Chatham Grammar School, in Kent, who with Munday + Cramer’s help, successfully secured £2.3M of CIF funding, back in 2019. The school broke ground recently, putting the wheels of months’ worth of work firmly into motion.
What Is Ground-Breaking?
The process of ground-breaking isn’t particularly groundbreaking, we’re afraid! It’s a term used in construction circles when physical construction work begins on a project. In other words, when the ground is literally ‘broken’ for the first time. It’s usually accompanied by a nice photo; project managers in high-visibility jackets, their heads adorned with hard hats and a beaming smile. This photo opportunity usually represents the last moments of calm or respite, on-site, until the project is completely finished.
What Work Is The School Having Done?
Chatham Grammar wanted to enrich and improve the lives of their pupils and staff, alike, both educationally and pastorally. The plan devised to deliver this was through the construction of an entirely new, standalone building which would house eight new classrooms and associated facilities. This would replace an existing area of the school which, structurally, was no longer fit-for-purpose; the area in question was dilapidated and dated, with significant structural problems, therein. The design is of a contemporary style, adding a modern and exciting feel to the school and the surrounding area. This is only fitting for a school who has seen its rankings consistently rise, in recent times. So much so that the school is now positioned at the top of the Medway Grammar School league table.
Functionally speaking, these new classrooms will provide more spacious and appropriate learning environs. This is crucial to grammar schools like Chatham, who are constantly looking to grow and expand, in order to cater to the increasingly common problem of oversubscription. After all, it’s all very well wanting to expand, but if your facility isn’t of a quality to match that desire for growth, then you’re potentially depriving your students of experiencing the kind of enriched educational journey that they deserve to have.
What Was The Specific Funding Obtained?
Chatham Grammar secured CIF funding, but what is the CIF? It stands for the Condition Improvement Fund. It’s a Government fund used by academies and schools; it’s used to address structural repair works, health and safety concerns, safeguarding measures and occasionally expansion works. You can find out more about the CIF in our previous blog here. The replacement building block, made possible by the CIF funding, is expected to be completed by November, this year.
What Munday + Cramer Has To Say
Having handled the project from the beginning, Munday + Cramer are also taking care of the project management side of things from here on in. Karl Curnock is one of Munday + Cramer’s project managers, and will be taking the reins moving forward, in conjunction with construction company New World Builders Ltd. Here’s what he had to say about the news:
“We are very happy to have broken ground on the Chatham Grammar build. We’ve worked on this project from the start of the proposal, through the application process and we are excited to see the difference the facility can make to the education for these young people and their families.”
The ground-breaking process may only constitute a tiny fragment of a project, but that’s no reason to underplay its importance. It’s always a highly symbolic and significant moment for any project, for the school and project management team, alike, and we look forward to seeing the Chatham Grammar project get underway. Education paves the way for future innovation, so it’s only right that we innovate our educational spaces, in turn. Chatham’s ground-breaking is timely, because only in the past couple of weeks, Munday + Cramer announced their other successes for 2020’s CIF funding applicants, as well!
Contact Us
You can find out more about those here. If you’d like to find out more about our CIF funding services, then get in touch! Contact Munday + Cramer today on 01245 326 200.
