HSDC Alton Independent Living Centre

HSDC Alton has been working in collaboration with Hampshire County Council (HCC) to provide students with learning difficulties with a post-16 education offer as part of their transition from school to an independent future. In the lead up to the project, HCC identified the need for additional dedicated facilities at the campus due to a forecast increase in the number of students with learning difficulties and the need to free up capacity for 11-16 learners within the existing special school sector. HSDC and HCC collaborated to create a project brief and then HSDC and PMc took the project through the design phase and to construction. The design team included Rock Townsend Architects and Brontide MEP consultants. The brief provides for four base rooms for learners aged 16-20 as well as a cookery and independent living training suite, sensory rooms and a café space.

Part of the project brief also included the creation of a sensory garden for the College. The PMc team took a hands on approach to this and spent 2 days on site creating a sensory garden for the College as part of a team-building hands-on project.