In September 2023, the school was faced with a sudden serious situation which threatened to disrupt the students’ education levels on a significant scale. However, with the help of local business Portable Space, Farlingaye High School was able to overcome a very challenging time and continue to provide high-standard education to their students.

At the end of the Summer, the school administration was informed that 20% of the school buildings were deemed too dangerous for their intended purpose, and as a result, had to be shut down due to the recent government advice regarding Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC). This type of concrete has been identified in many public buildings built between the 1950s and mid-1990s, including a number of hospitals and schools in the UK.  Farlingaye was not initially featured on the original government list of affected schools, so the news that in fact they were came as a real shock sparking swift action to find a solution at short notice.

Suffolk based Portable Space were perfectly placed to offer alternative temporary accommodation which met the required regulations and given the close proximity to Woodbridge, were able to supply, deliver and install in a very quick turnaround.

Cabins supplied equated to a total of 696.48m² and provided sufficient classroom space, toilets, and changing room facilities. This helped minimise potential downtime, allowing the school to maintain the students’ education levels with minimum disruption. The Portable Space team of experts installed the cabins professionally, ensuring that the safety of the students was maintained at all times, and rules of the school were also followed.

Open and frequent communication was maintained throughout the project to ensure that the school’s administration, teachers, and pupils were kept up to date with progress. With an acknowledgment of the urgent nature of the task, both Portable Space and all staff at Farlingaye High School worked together from start to finish to ensure a positive and productive outcome.

“At a time of crisis and massive disruption, Portable Space were incredible in their engagement, support, and flexibility to help the school find creative solutions to the problem it faced.  Their personal approach meant they listened to our needs, carefully tailoring their offer and support to ensure that the needs of the school were met.  Whilst so many other schools nationally struggled to find ways to address the RAAC problem, we were able to quickly return to normal teaching with first class facilities for all our students thanks to the work of Portable Space”. – Gemma Garnham, Premises Co-Ordinator at Farlingaye High School.

The final cabins were delivered on Friday 6^th October 2023. Due to Portable Space having suitable products in stock, their own fleet of 14 vehicles, plus being situated in the same county as the school made for a successful outcome of a significant project which was completed start to finish in under one month.