New Partnership – Norse Consulting
Norse Consulting has cemented its commitment to SPACES and Public Sector Construction by signing a new partnership agreement with us.
Our partnership with Norse Consulting, will support us in continuing to offer free membership to those working within the public sector and expands our resource capability.
The Norse Group is the largest commercial local authority trading company in the UK and has a track record of delivering profitable and successful partnerships with councils across the country.
You can view the press release here.
Watch online
Study Day 2022: Net Zero Carbon – Building Resilience
Thursday 23rd June 2022
You can now watch the videos, podcasts and webinars at
Study Day 2022: Net Zero Carbon – Building Resilience – YouTube
Please help us by completing the feedback survey.
Once again thank you to our sponsors Atkins, Bauder Roofing, Faithful+Gould, Norse Consulting, Pick Everard and Willmott Dixon, our exhibitors IES, Ecophon and Innovare Systems, and Concertus Design and Property Consultants who sponsored the networking evening before.
Watch Webinars in your own home or office
Webinars this Autumn
1:00pm Thursday 8 September
Webinar: EnergiRaven – Building Carbon Management Tool
Hosted by Steve Rufus, Vice-President and Head of Profession, Engineering, SPACES, Lars Fabricius and Jonathon Hunter-Hill, SAV Systems will be presenting on EnergiRaven – Building Carbon Management Tool.
See here for more information and to register.
2:00pm on Wednesday 12th October
SPACES Study Day Webinar: The Construction Playbook
As part of our ongoing series of webinars related to our Study Day, Net Zero Carbon – Building Resilience, Richard Davidson, Willmott Dixon will be presenting on The Construction Playbook: HMG response to improving built environment outcomes through smarter procurement. This webinar will be facilitated by Greg Keeling, Events Director.
See here for more information and to register.
The above webinars are hosted on webinarjam and you must register to attend. For further information on the above and other webinars see our Calendar.
Working with schools?
SAMHE: schools needed for indoor air quality study
In July’s Study Day Webinar – Schools and Ventilation, Henry Burridge introduced SAMHE (Schools’ Air quality Monitoring for Health and Education, pronounced ‘Sammy’) which is a DfE supported project on indoor air quality in UK schools. Schools will get a free air quality monitor linked to a Web App to enable pupils and teachers to view and interact with their data.
SAMHE is looking for ‘Pioneer Schools’ who could help trial the monitors, Web App and associated educational activities this autumn term. Schools’ feedback will help make sure the project meets students’ and teachers’ needs as well as providing valuable national scale data.
Please read the SAMHE leaflet and share SAMHE pioneer schools invitation with schools.
For more information, please email SAMHE.
Have you been involved with a public building or project that has made a difference to a community?
Yearbook and Awards 2022
SPACES are pleased to announce the projects that have been successfully shortlisted for the Civic Building of the Year (CBOY) and SPACES Awards and will be in the yearbook.
You can view the list on our website, and also download the information on the project teams.
Our congratulations go to them all.
The winner of the Civic Building of the Year, and other awards will be announced at our Annual Awards and President’s Dinner, being held in early November.
The yearbook will also be published on this date. We are looking for advertisers for the yearbook – if you are interested, please see our website.
Get involved!
Annual General Meeting
Thursday 20th October 2022
It is a requirement of the SPACES By-Laws that an Annual General Meeting (AGM) is held each year.
This year the AGM will be held online via Teams on Thursday 20th October 2022 from 1:00 to 2:00pm. You can download a copy of the last year’s minutes here. NB The official notification will be sent to SPACES members towards the end of August.
SPACES are always looking for more volunteers! The main roles we need to fill are:
Head of Profession – Architecture (3 year term – appointed by the board, ratified at the AGM)
Head of Profession – Engineering (3 year term – appointed by the board, ratified at the AGM)
Head of Profession – Project Management (3 year term – appointed by the board, ratified at the AGM)
Advisor: Marketing and Communication (2 year term – elected by members)
Advisor: Membership (2 year term – elected by members)
If you are interested, please let Jackie and Steve know.
Please complete the form on the website to attend or send your apologies.
We are getting involved
UK Metals Expo
14th to 15th September, NEC Birmingham
EMEX
23rd to 24th November 2022, Excel, London
You can register for free!
Other events
ACES Conference: 2050: Path to Sustainable Communities
Our colleagues in ACES (The Association of Chief Estates Surveyors and Property Managers in the Public Sector) are holding their Annual Conference on the 15th and 16th September in Sutton.
For more information and to book your place see their website.
You can also read the ACES Terrier.
Catch up
YouTube Channel
Don’t forget to catch up with videos, podcasts and webinars on our YouTube channel/.
Have you got a question?
SPACES Technical Enquiries
We now have a LinkedIn group for our members to post questions. This is for members only. Please click on this link to join.
- Do not post anything that you wouldn’t want your Chief Exec or your Mother/Children to see.
- Respect other members of the Group
- What happens in the Group chats stays in the group
- This group if for those signed up for SPACES membership only as per our records
- The group and the posts are moderated by SPACES, we reserve the right to remove anything that goes against our By-Laws.
Summary of what’s been happening
Useful Information
(Follow us on LinkedIn for updates)
On 28th July 2022 the DfE have updated the asbestos management assurance process (AMAP) ‘List of participating schools and responsible bodies’ to reflect the final position on the closure of AMAP on 12 November 2021.
See here for more information.
As the Building Safety Act comes into law the CIBSE journal reported how the industry is facing the biggest reform of building control ever seen. With the HSE raising concerns about 50% of designs at the first planning gateway of the new safety regime, it’s clearly essential to get to grips with the changes now.
See here for more information.
BEIS have launched a ‘Check if a heat pump could be suitable for your home’ tool.
See here for more information.
School rebuilding programme: third set of 61 schools
The Department for Education have announced another 61 schools on the school rebuilding programme.
See here for more information.
The Environmental Audit Committee has called for a rapid reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, as well as operational carbon targets. Hywel Davies looks at the detail in the CIBSE journal.
See here for more information.
Lessons learned from Covid-19 should be applied now to ensure resilience against future pandemics, according to a new NEPC report. Among recommendations are a Building Regulation for health and wellbeing, and in-use testing of ventilation. Shaun Fitzgerald FCIBSE shares the findings in the CIBSE journal.
See here for more information.
Shaun presented at last year’s Virtual conference – you can watch here.
Hard to decarbonise social homes
This LGA report examines the decarbonisation of social homes, looks at why some are harder to decarbonise than others and explores the changes required to make hard to treat social homes easier to decarbonise.
See here for more information.
A CROSS reporter was asked to investigate a reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) roof which had collapsed in a school.
They are concerned that many schools are not aware if their roofs are constructed of RAAC planks and are therefore not aware of the risks.
They suggest that these planks are becoming more defective with time.
See here for more information.
One Public Estate: Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF2) July 2022
The LGA, Cabinet Office and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities for the One Public Estate programme has made up to £180 million of funding available to councils through the Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF2) to support the release of council-owned brownfield land for housing. Closing date for applications 19th August 2022.
See here for more information.