New Hall at St Peter’s Primary School, Heversham

New Hall at St Peter’s Primary School, Heversham

St Peter’s is a small Church of England primary school housed in original Victorian buildings to which a number of extensions had been added over the years.  It had grown to the point where a new School Hall became essential.

The Hall has a laminated timber roof structure using pitched beams bolted together at the ridge in order to avoid the need for horizontal ties that would have restricted the open space.  The beams bear onto steel columns set flush with the blockwork walls and at the head of the columns is a metal plate to which the timber beams are bolted.  The plates have a circular hoop which forms a kind of capital to the columns and into which metal sculptures of animals are fixed.  These were intended to give some visual interest to the interior and were created by the sculptor Claire Bigger from ideas originally drawn by the children.  Likewise the stained glass was based on the children’s designs and made by the firm Northern Lights of Kendal.

The proposals included an adjacent kitchen  from which pre-prepared meals are served and there are stores for sports equipment and dining tables and chairs.

In association with the Hall, a small, carpeted ‘amphitheatre’ was created to take advantage of a drop in levels across the site and this has been found to be a useful space for rehearsals and presentations.

The Hall was named the ‘John Hancock Hall’ by a unanimous vote of parents, staff and governors in honour of the retiring chair of governors, Reverend Canon John Hancock.