Charterhouse School - Lessington Car Park
Client: Charterhouse School
Landscape Architect: LUC
Cost: £400k
Duration: 8 weeks
Location: Godalming
Founded in 1611, Charterhouse is one of the UK’s leading independent boarding and day schools for boys and girls. The school is set within an inspiring 250-acre campus, which is one of the best, if not the best in the country. The school’s setting encourages pupils to contribute and provides a safe community in which to explore and grow.
Blakedown Landscapes’ remit was to create a new car park, sympathetically constructed, part of a long term strategy to pedestrianise the school.
WORKS
Works included:
Excavation and removal of existing ground, taking into consideration root protection zones and services
Working around an exiting 90mm gas main through the site
Sustainable drainage system utilising permeable block paving
Rootcell system running under the car park to create the best possible growing space for the centre tree line
New surfaced entry road
Lighting and electric car charging point
New feature cycle parking shelter
Tree and hedge planting
SITE CHALLENGES
The project was completed whilst the school was fully operational. This included keeping access for deliveries, waste collections and school visitors via the site only access point.
Other considerations:
90mm gas pipe had to be located and then constructed around, with advice and attendance from the service provider
North section of site is all in a tree root protection zone and hand work only along with air spade excavation
Restricted access point and no further storage areas
Sustainable urban drainage system with attenuation system
Tree pit crate system to ensure tree root space and not to compromise the structure of the car park
“Charterhouse has worked with Blakedown Landscapes on several projects, all of which have been very successful.
Blakedown has built two 70 space car parks, a new access road running alongside 11 KVa cable across site, a new pile supported ramped approach into our maintenance yard and new footpath. They have managed the projects well, both within an occupied site, following our procedures at all times, and working with external bodies such as tree officers, arboriculturalists and ecologists, to ensure as trouble free delivery, as possible.
We have found Blakedown a pleasure to work with. They are extremely helpful and flexible with a can-do attitude, providing an extremely high quality finished product on time and budget.”
