New Builds, Refurbishments & Maintenance for the Education Sector:

Over the years at Hightown Group, we’ve made a speciality of providing quality new builds, refurbishments as well as reactive planned maintenance to the education sector. We know that when you have limited resources you want the best that money can buy.

Over the years, we have worked with a number of universities, schools and colleges delivering quality new builds and refurbishments that not only add to the look and feel of a campus but also provides excellent new facilities for staff and students to use.

Students in particular nowadays look carefully at campuses to see what they offer. A well designed and planned refurbishment can introduce new technology and create great spaces for learning that attract top students who value your facilities. It’s one of the best ways that places like universities can set themselves apart from the competition.

Keeping Disruption to a Minimum

One issue that always raises its head when we handle refurbishments for universities, colleges and schools is how much disruption there will be while the work is being undertaken. We take pride in the fact that we always liaise closely with major stakeholders and the people using particular buildings so that we make sure any disruption is kept to a minimum. We have extensive experience of working within a live environment meaning that during many projects buildings have been able to remain open to students and staff. That means staff and students can get on with the business of enjoying their education and learning new things while we get on with the work.

With careful planning and plenty of discussion there’s no reason why even a major refurbishment should close down a section of a university completely. Yes, there will be big jobs to undertake and certain areas to cordon off, but getting the processes in place that deliver on expectations and keep disturbances low is part of the reason why we’re a popular choice with educational establishments across the North.

The key is in putting in the right plan and segregating areas so that any potential for disruption is kept down – that requires an experienced team who know how to co-ordinate activities, something which Hightown has in abundance. That also means being flexible in our approach and reacting to requests from the stakeholders we work with.

It’s not just reducing the amount of disruption that is important, of course. With staff and students moving fairly freely around campus, we have to make sure that work areas are kept as safe as possible. All our builders and contractors adhere to very high safety standards which means that you don’t have to worry about those working in the immediate area. Sections that we are refurbishing will be properly secured, with clear signage and appropriate safety measures.

The Benefits of a Refurbishment

A refurbishment is often the best way to make use of existing building stock, especially for universities and colleges that have limited budgets. You can transform an ordinary building into something modern and hi-tech that not only looks great but also helps market your campus to potential students.

In the past, we’ve worked on major refurbishments at locations such as Liverpool John Moore’s University, Liverpool Hope University and Wakefield College. It’s a process of collaboration and commitment to quality and it’s an area where we have gained a good reputation over the years. Our ethos is simple: we aim to deliver high standards at all times, on budget and to expectations.

Reactive and Planned Maintenance

We operate a nationwide service that is available 365 days of the year, 24 hours a day and is ideal if you need a company to respond to emergencies or carry out important preventative maintenance.

First of all, we have the teams on board that can respond to almost any situation. For universities and other education establishments having all this maintenance power can be costly if it is contained on site. The benefits of using a facilities management support team like Hightown is that you only need to call on it when you have a problem or issue that requires attention.

That could mean something like the heating in a building breaking down and needing to be replaced. It could relate to something like storm damage where windows or infrastructure needs to be repaired. We’ve worked with organisations such Liverpool John Moore’s University and built long lasting relationships that have ensured facilities are well managed.

With the experience we bring to the table, Hightown can also spot issues that need to be addressed and carry out the necessary preventative maintenance that saves money in the long term. We operate in an open and transparent way, working with relevant stakeholders to ensure we deliver the support that modern universities need.

Contact Us

To find out more or to discuss an upcoming project with a member of our team please call 0151 214 3402 (Head Office) or 0121 663 1278 (Midlands Office)