Monthly Archives: November 2022

Kingsmill SEN School Case Study

Situated in the heart of the community of Driffield, Kingsmill School is a SEN school which caters for pupils aged 2-19 years. Situated across two sites, the main school site houses Early Years through to Key Stage 4. The school was completed in May 2017 and has been purpose built to meet the needs of its pupils. Alongside eleven new classrooms, the main site also has a new hydrotherapy pool, rebound room, sensory therapy room and sensory rooms.

Students aged 16-19 are based at The Kings Mill Student Centre which is based at Driffield Secondary School approximately a mile away from the main site. This comprises three classrooms and a combined common room and food technology area.

When the school decided to utilise its outdoor space to provide a safe environment for pupils to learn and play undercover, Twinfix were approached by Main Contractor Hobson Porter to design, manufacture & install four classroom canopies..

The free-standing mono-pitch canopies all comprise our innovative Multi-Link-Panel Non-Fragile (NF) roofing system, glazed with 16mm multiwall polycarbonate. The roof is non-fragile in accordance with the HSE’s test for fragility ACR[M]001:2019, an important factor when installing canopies where children may try and access the roof. Each canopy has an aluminium frame, powder-coated to RAL 5015 sky blue to match the school’s building and logo. Other features Twinfix incorporated into the design of canopies are anti-climb guttering and post-protectors, which provided further elements of safety for the students.

Being a one-stop shop for designing, manufacturing and installing such outdoor structures we are proud to offer a seamless service to any school or other education establishment looking for a canopy or walkway. We are really pleased that the staff at Kingsmill School are delighted with the latest additions to their school and we know they are planning to use it for all sorts of fun and healthy outdoor learning/playing experiences for their children.

Latest news from the Twinfix Team

Our team have been out and about meeting up with familiar faces and also making new connections over the last month.

We have exhibited at Education Estates and Learning Places Scotland, showcasing how our range of high-quality, safe canopies and roof glazing can benefit education settings.

Our Account Manager for the South, Vanessa visited last week’s London Build Exhibition, while Director, Vicky exhibited at Rail North Conference and Transcity Rail and Account Manager Josh popped in to MPBA’s offices to pick up our updated membership certificate.

The team have also been busy presenting lots of CPDs to specifiers of roof glazing and canopy systems online and on site. If you would like to book a cpd or find out more then click here.

Back to the future- how modern sustainable materials are being used to preserve historic stations  

Twinfix have been utilising their skills and expertise to restore part of the historic Watford High Street Station, returning the station’s entrance to its former glory. By using their Multi-Link-Panel Non-Fragile glazed with 6mm solid Georgian wired effect polycarbonate, they have brought this landmark up to date with sustainable materials, while keeping the look and feel of the original.

Watford High Street Station was originally opened over 160 years ago by the Watford and Rickmansworth Railway (W&RR), offering services from Watford Junction to Rickmansworth. Over its 160 life the station has been owned by several rail companies in eluding the London and North-western Railway (LNWR) and London, Midland, and Scottish Railway (LMS).

In the early twentieth century additional rail services were added. These include a branch line to Croxley Green in 1912. The Underground Electric Railways Company of London in 1917, extended its Bakerloo line through this station to Watford Junction and in 1922 LNWR completed the Camden to Watford Junction Line linking Watford High Street to London Euston via the Watford DC Line (shared with the Bakerloo line). In 2007 the line was brought under the control of Transport for London (TfL), who today operate it as part of the London Overground network.

To the east of the railway is the site of the Benskins Brewery, the building which is now the location for the Watford Museum. The brewery was rail-served by sidings until 1956. The station is situated in a deep cutting covered by a single platform canopy. The roof of the canopy is connected to the concrete sided cutting by ornamental metal trusses. Outside the front of the station, is a distinctive glazed entrance canopy providing shelter from the weather and a historic landmark for the town.

After decades of use the old entrance canopy and glazing were showing signs of age. The wood framing around the glazing was rotten and decaying, the plaster work was broken and missing and the whole canopy needed a refresh. With the glazed canopy being such a long-standing landmark, it fell to Twinfix to replace the distinctive glazing panels with something hard wearing, sustainable and modern but without losing the period look. Twinfix supplied their Multi-Link-Panel Non-Fragile (NF) glazed with 6mm solid Georgian wired effect polycarbonate glazing system, the innovative system was installed by RailX UK Ltd. A slight redesign of the original allowed access hatches to be installed, making maintenance easier. Installed it’s almost impossible to detect the hard work and modern materials that have been used to bring this important structure back to life. The polycarbonate will resist ageing and UV degradation and along with the aluminium support frames, the system is completely recyclable.

Vicky Evans, Director at Twinfix, said; “We are proud of the finished product and that we were able to offer a long-term solution that delivers the aesthetic charm of the old roof, increases light levels for passengers, improves safety for all using the station and offers a sustainable, future proof outcome. We look forward to being part of delivering more excellent results for our clients in the future.”

Case Study – Ysgol Bro Myrddin

Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bro Myrddin is a Welsh-medium Comprehensive school in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The school was founded in 1978, on the premises of the former Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School for Boys, Carmarthen. In 1996 the school was moved to its current purpose-built campus at Croesyceiliog. Every year, approximately 150 pupils are admitted to the school in year 7 and about 950 pupils in total attend the school and with over 200 pupils attend the sixth-form college.

When the school had a requirement for shelter over the outdoor construction area and also an eating area for their pupils, Twinfix were approached by Main Contractor Lloyd & Gravell to design, manufacture and install the free-standing mono-pitch canopies spanning a total of 156 square metres.

Both the canopies have aluminium frames powder coated in hipca white, RAL 9910 SG.  As this metal doesn’t rust in use, they will keep their good looks throughout their long life.

The roof glazing consists of Twinfix Multi-Link-Panels NF fitted with 16mm clear multi-wall multiwall polycarbonate.  The NF (Non-Fragile) denotes that these panels conform to the HSE’s recommended drop test ACR[M]001:2019, as recommended by HSG33.

Vertical glazing was included in the design for one of the canopies, to provide protection from the weather all year round whilst enabling vision into and out of the canopy.

Mr Madoc-Jones, Deputy Head at the school commented – ‘Twinfix – a professional company that understands the needs of schools, and the fact that space is a premium. Twinfix has helped us to maximise the use of outdoor spaces, providing enhanced outdoor eating areas as well as additional teaching space at a time when ‘being outdoors’ is recognised as very important for the well-being of learners. Courteous, safe, professional and always reachable and reliable, Twinfix worked with us to find excellent solutions to enhancing our outdoor offer to learners. Highly recommended.’

Once the installation was complete and realising the benefits that the vertical glazing offers, the school requested that it be added to the second structure.