A CIRENCESTER woman who thanks the lovely residents for all their support since she moved from Japan has released a book to mark the ten year anniversary of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Caroline Pover, who now runs Auntie Caroline’s Pickled Onions & Chutneys from her home in Cirencester, lived in Tokyo at the time of the disaster. Ten years ago yesterday, one of the biggest earthquakes in history occurred off the northeast coast of Japan, triggering a deadly tsunami that destroyed much of the Tohoku coastline. Caroline’s book, One Month in Tohoku, tells a moving tale of the very human impact of this natural disaster.
An Eastcombe school will not provide face-to-face teaching to 75 per cent of its students before the Easter break after structural weaknesses were found in its buildings. A survey carried out at Thomas Keble School revealed that its two largest buildings, which account for 80 per cent of its space, need reinforcement if they are to withstand upcoming heavy construction work. Several smaller buildings remain unaffected, so Year 11 will return on Monday as expected to prepare for their mock GCSE examinations. “From a parent s and from childrens point of view I can absolutely understand anxieties, and actually from a staff point of view we want our children back; we’re not a proper school without them,” said Julia Maunder, head teacher at Thomas Keble.
Rethinking design series: Schools
“It’s imperative we get this right,” says Richard Hyams, founder and director of architecture practice Astudio. “The ramifications of the decisions we make now have the potential to impact the next generation.”
Arguably such views on the future of school design and construction could be made at any point in time; after all, good-quality school buildings should always be central in supporting children’s and young people’s learning. But the pandemic, which barred many children from physically attending school and exacerbated inequalities in education, has increased the pressure on those working on capital projects to create spaces that can adapt to future crises. Teachers, parents and politicians all agree that never again should students face the disruptions of the past 12 months. And now it falls to construction professionals to think of design solutions that can make school buildings more resilient in the future.
The £1billion School Rebuilding Programme is due to deliver 500 rebuilding projects over the next decade. Katharine Lady Berkeley is one of only two school named in the first 50 projects from the Gloucestershire area, with Thomas Keble in Stroud also benefitting. On hearing the announcement on Friday, KLB head teacher Tim Rand said: “This investment in our school is much welcomed and will support the school’s aim of providing a modern state of the art learning environment for our students. It will deliver a level of investment and change that could never have been realised through our normal funding streams, and will deliver accommodation appropriate for the next 50 years and beyond.