Stroud College

New £17.8m campus development

Whole on-site redevelopment acts as turning point for a ‘special measures’ college

This whole campus redevelopment on the existing college-owned site required us to maintain operations, minimise disruption and ensure the safety of students and staff during construction. At the time of Keystone’s appointment as Lead Adviser, the College was in special measures and the delivery of a major redevelopment was an essential part of the strategy for turning the college around.

Surplus land on the site was sold to Barratt Homes in an innovative partnering approach developed by Keystone to maximise the value derived by the College on the land sale. The Developer/Partner and College worked together throughout the design and planning stages to ensure that the new college design was optimised and the site value maximised.

The new building has a gross internal area of 9,907sq m. Construction started in September 2005 and the project was delivered on time and to budget, to an enthusiastic reception during the 2007 Easter break.

Our services:

  • Strategic property advice and property strategy
  • Feasibility studies and funding applications
  • Intelligent Client Support
  • Land acquisition and disposal
  • Project management
  • Procurement

Our role:

Keystone provided the strategic property advice that led to the selection of the preferred option for redevelopment of the College.

As Project Manager and Employer’s Agent, we also acted as Lead Consultant and Lead Adviser, with a strategic overview in co-ordinating the design development, where we set and monitored key milestones with the architect.

The budget was very tight, so we maximised all value engineering considerations, while maintaining high quality and ultimately delivering a tangible ‘wow factor’.

Among other activities, we:

  • Prepared a robust business case that secured capital funding support from the LSC.
  • Our early involvement of a developer partner ensured the planning approval process was problem free and maximum value was obtained for the land disposal.
  •  We maintained a hands-on approach to Project Management during delivery. Our in-depth understanding of College operations enabled us to pre-empt potential issues during the design development phase.
  • As Employer’s Agent, when contractual differences arose with the contractor, we promoted open discussion and negotiated swift settlement, which have ultimately ensured that the building was completed on time and to budget.

  • “… there is no doubt in my mind that the10,000m2 of the intricate structure that now occupies the College’s second car park, would not be standing if it was not for Keystone and their meticulous approach to project planning and the subsequent management of that plan; all concluding in the delivery of our superb £18 million building! ……Happy client, smiling staff and very enthused students!”
    John Cook, Estates Manager (retired), Stroud College in Gloucestershire

If you think we can be of assistance, call us on 0117 952 3095, or email mail@keystone-projects.co.uk.

Case Studies

Testimonials

  • "Keystone Projects have been an integral part of our estates strategy development and implementation since 2005. Over many years they have provided a consistently high quality of service and reporting yet they are very flexible and responsive, enabling us to meet some very tight deadlines. It is very reassuring to know that Keystone is on hand to support us when required and that they know and integrate with our organisation seamlessly."
    Robert Bates, Director (Estates and Development), Coleg Gwent
  • "Keystone Projects Ltd have worked with the college for over 10 years and have provided outstanding support for a number of significant projects which has included high level strategic planning, site acquisition, space planning, bid writing support and project management. They are a professional team with a range of expertise and have an excellent knowledge and understanding of property and accommodation but most importantly understand the FE Sector."
    Laurence Frewin, Vice Principal, South Devon College
  • "Keystone always provides work to the highest professional standard and is a true partner in our projects."
    Alex Anderson, Head of Estates Development and Facilities, Coleg Gwent