The Role Of Portable Buildings In The Development Of UK Schools

For decades, portable buildings have been a common sight in schools across the UK, where they are used as everything from classrooms, IT suites and art buildings, to changing rooms, toilets and showers.

In this post, we’ll be exploring the role they continue to have in expanding and developing schools, colleges and universities, and why they’ve become so popular across the education sector.

Cost effective expansion

One of the biggest challenges facing educational facilities in the UK is the pressure for places. With a growing population comes a rise in the number of pupils and students, and schools, colleges and universities are always looking for ways to increase their capacity.

Due to budgetary and space restraints, it isn’t always feasible to build completely new facilities, or to extend and develop permanent, traditional buildings, and portable and modular buildings are the best, cost-effective alternative.

It’s significantly cheaper and easier to purchase portable and modular buildings than it is to build a traditional classroom or building extension, and with an effective lifespan of up to 60 years or more, they also provide a long-term, sustainable solution.

Responsive capacity

One of the biggest advantages that portable and modular buildings have over traditional builds in an education setting is the speed with which they can be constructed.

Whereas it can take years to gain planning permission and complete traditional building work, with portable and modular buildings, the process is much simpler, shorter and less disruptive.

The planning and building regulations are less stringent, and most portable buildings can be constructed, delivered and assembled on site, so they are ready to use just a few weeks from order.

Usually, portable buildings are constructed during school or university holidays, making them an attractive prospect for educational establishments that need to expand their capacity quickly, whilst minimising disruption.

Temporary classrooms

Portable buildings are also a really useful way of providing temporary facilities for schools – either whilst permanent buildings are being created, or when a new school is being built.

In addition to the low purchase costs and speed of construction, another advantage of portable buildings is that they can be easily moved from one site to another. They can also be repurposed into different learning environments as circumstances change, meaning that schools and universities can get a lot of value out of a single investment.

Because portable and modular buildings are so popular in the education sector, schools can quickly and easily sell the units once they are finished with them, meaning that they can also recoup some of the money spent on them.

Versatility

One of the great advantages of portable and modular buildings is their versatility.

Portable buildings can be configured into every type of learning environment, from classrooms, Art facilities and IT suites, to toilet blocks, changing rooms and shower facilities. Modular buildings can be designed to any size, specification and purpose, meaning that schools can get the exact facilities they need.

If requirements change, it’s also fairly easy and cost-effective to repurpose portable buildings and to extend modular buildings to include new facilities, along with additional space and capacity.

How we can help

At Clearview Modular Buildings, we provide a huge range of modular buildings created specifically for the education sector, from ready-made classrooms and nurseries, right across to new, bespoke modular buildings.

With a selection of both new and used buildings available at competitive prices, we can provide everything you need to increase capacity and develop your school facilities.

All our buildings are manufactured from durable materials that are designed to stand up to the everyday challenges and constant wear and tear of daily educational use.