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Primary School PE and Sports FacilitiesThe Scottish Executive’s School Estate Strategyaims to create a teaching and learning environmentfit for the future. It gives Local Education Authoritiesguidance on developing a Strategy for their schoolestate and advice on school design. This Guidesets out sportscotland’s latest advice on primaryschool sports facilities. It aims to complement theSchool Estate Strategy, by providing more detailedadvice on meeting the requirements of pupils,teachers and the wider community.

This design guidance supplements ‘SecondarySchool Sports Facilities: Designing for Schooland Community Use’ (sportscotland 2003).Many design issues relate to both secondaryand primary schools, and designers shouldalso refer to the secondary school guidance,particularly for more technical matters.Further guidance on school playing fields,and on management of school sporting andcultural facilities for community use, will beavailable soon.

The need for design advice Physical education (PE) at primary level is deliveredin a less formal setting and manner than in secondaryschools. In early primary years, the focus is onfoundation skills such as running, throwing,catching, movement and balance, and eye/handco-ordination. As children get older, the emphasistransfers to more specific sporting and physicalactivity, usually by teaching the basic skills foreach activity and eventually through small-sidedor ‘mini’ versions of full sports.

Specialist, purpose-designed facilities are requiredif these skills are to be taught in an environmentof the right size, design and specification, conduciveto learning and enjoyment. This is particularlyimportant in encouraging children to participatein activities outside the school day, and indeveloping a positive attitude to health andphysical activity for secondary school and beyond.This document provides advice on the numbersand types of spaces required by primary schoolsof a range of sizes, and on the factors to considerwhen designing these spaces.

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The need for community useThe issues and challenges raised by communityuse of primary school sports facilities aredifferent from those posed by the use of secondaryfacilities. The most obvious difference is the sizeof the children, and therefore of the spacesrequired. Primary school PE normally requiressmaller, more intimate activity spaces. Ancillaryspaces such as changing rooms, toilets andshowersalso require fittings and equipment designed foryoung children. Because the spaces are designedand equipped for smaller children, designing foradult community use in a primary school is lessstraightforward than in secondary schools.This usually restricts the range of activitiesavailable for adults.

However, even in communities where there arepublic sports facilities, or where the secondaryschool is available for community use, there maystill be a demand for facilities that primaryschools can meet. It is important, therefore,to provide for community use.

Primary schools are much more numerous thansecondary schools, and tend to represent a morecommunity-based, neighbourhood facility.They will generally be more accessible to thosewithout access to a car. They will also be of a sizewell suited to less formal community use and,of course, to use by younger children. Finally,in rural areas, the local primary school is oftenthe only facility within a reasonable distance,and can be a vital centre for sporting and othercommunity activities. This is particularly thecase in remote and island communities wheretravel to other facilities may not be an option.

sportscotland urges all local authorities toconsider the potential contribution new andrefurbished primary schools can make to meetingthe sporting needs of local communities. Theprovision of new school facilities should beplanned as part of a wider strategy for all sportsfacilities in the area.

Primary School PETo achieve facilities well suited to the delivery ofprimary school PE, designers must be aware ofhow this subject is delivered. The National 5-14Guidelines describe the aims of PE for youngchildren as follows:

• Physical activity is essential to the growth anddevelopment of children. Physical educationoffers opportunities for the development ofphysical competencies, social skills, fitnessand a healthy lifestyle.

• Physical education should provide all pupilswith opportunities– to engage in purposeful and enjoyablephysical activities;

– to develop physical skills, knowledge andunderstanding of the concepts involved andthe ability to apply these in various contexts;

– to develop self-awareness, confidence andco-operative relationships with others andthe ability to meet challenges presented ina variety of physical settings;

– to develop life-long positive attitudes tohealth and fitness;

– to develop critical appreciation of theirown performances and those of others.

Despite these well-established aims, there iscurrently much concern over the health and fitnessof young children in Scotland and their low levelsof participation in physical activity. Improving thissituation means not only increasing levels andquality of participation within the PE curriculum,but also increasing participation after school.Scotland’s Physical Activity Strategy, ‘Let’s MakeScotland More Active’, and sportscotland’s ActiveSchools programme are both aimed at tacklingthese issues. Facilities must therefore be designedto meet the needs of both PE and after schoolsport and physical activity.

Well designed facilities are not, of course, theonly factor in ensuring quality PE for our children.But they are essential if we are to allow teachersand their pupils to reach their full potential,and to encourage an enjoyment and love ofsport and physical recreation.

of moving towards such a target, and requireswell-designed, adequately dimensioned facilities.Groups of children taking part in these activitiescan be as large as, or even larger than, a classgroup, and a two-court hall is therefore therecommended minimum size for indoor activities.

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Community use of the facilities may be by localsports clubs for training, informal play or competitivematches; for dance or fitness classes; or for sportsdevelopment activities typically provided by thelocal authority or leisure trust. In order to facilitatesuch wider community use, a two-court hallshould be considered the absolute minimumto allow more than a very basic range of activities.Even a two-court hall can only accommodatea limited number of sports. A three-court hallwould in fact allow for a significantly greater rangeof activities, especially by adults and secondaryschool children. If significant levels of communityuse are expected, serious consideration shouldbe given to providing a three-court hall or larger.This should have dimensions of at least 27mx18mand a minimum height of 6.7m above the playingarea. If providing a three-court hall, the schoolmay wish to be able to partition the hall intotwo smaller spaces.

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The main activity spaceAs stated above, primary level PE needs specialistfacilities but it does not need the range of indoorfacilities required in most secondary schools.

The principal indoor teaching space for PE mustbe suitable for teaching a full class group of upto 30 or more children, whether P1 or P7. It musttherefore be intimate enough not to prove toodaunting to the younger children, or to inhibittheir self-expression. At the same time, however,it must be large enough to allow a full rangeof dynamic activities by a full class group of theoldest children. It must also accommodate groupsfor after school clubs and activities, such asprogrammes developed by Active SchoolCo-ordinators. Finally, many primary schools willhave an important role to play in providing for arange of sports activities by the wider community.

It is apparent, therefore, that providing such aspace will always be a compromise between therequirements of the various groups of users.Of these competing requirements, those of theschool are of course the most important.To meet these needs, sportscotland considers atwo-badminton-court hall to be the starting pointfrom which to plan the provision of PE facilitiesin a primary school. This space should be aminimum of 18m x 18m, with a minimum heightabove the playing area of 6.7m (Drawing 01, Pg4).

The primary requirement for the main PE space isfor an adequately dimensioned teaching space forthe whole school. Older children need more spacefor two reasons. Firstly, because they are larger,they take up and require more space around andbetween them. Secondly, they are likely to bedoing more dynamic, sports-specific activitieswhich require more space for movement and forprojectiles. It is essential that the principal PEspace in a primary school is large enough for a P7class group. For most schools a two-court hallwill be the minimum size required.

After-school activity, whether organised throughActive School Co-ordinators or other school clubs,is an important opportunity for pupils toparticipate in physical activity. In addition to thetarget of two hours of curricular PE per weeknoted below, the National Physical ActivityStrategy has a further target for every childto accumulate at least one hour of moderatephysical activity on five or more days a week.After-school activity will be an important means

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A two-court hall will not be appropriate for every school, and in many schools it will not be the only PE facility.However, as the principal PE space, it should in most cases represent the best balance between competing user requirements.

Drawing 01: Two-court Hall

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Assessing facility requirements As stated above, sportscotland considers atwo-court hall the basic unit of provision forprimary school sport and PE. Many schools,however, may require an additional activity space,or may be better served by an alternative sizeof principal space. In determining the level offacilities required for PE, the size of the schoolwill be the principal factor. The greater the numbersof pupils and class groups, the greater the demandson space. This guidance uses three simple modelsizes for schools:

• single-stream(one class for each year group - P1 to P7)

• two-stream(two classes for each year group - P1 to P7)

• three-stream(three classes for each year group - P1 to P7)

In line with sportscotland’s guidance onsecondary school facilities, it is recommended thatthe National Physical Activity Strategy’s target oftwo hours of PE per week for every child be usedas the basis for calculating facility requirements.This is an aspirational target at present, ratherthan a statutory requirement, but has beenadopted by the Scottish Executive as part of theStrategy. Calculating requirements on the basisof current (often lower) levels of use may resultin new schools where a lack of facilitiesconstrains future efforts to increase pupils’ levelsof physical activity. On the basis, therefore, of thetarget of two hours of PE per pupil (and thereforeper class) per week, our three model schools havethe following requirements:

• 14 hours of PE per week for single-stream schools• 28 hours of PE per week for two-stream schools• 42 hours of PE per week for three-stream schools

To calculate the number of activity spaces neededfor each of these model schools, we must calculatethe time available in a typical school week. If weassume five teaching hours are available on anormal school day (and three on a Friday), thereare 23 teaching hours available in the school week.

Single-streamFor single-stream schools, it is clear that only onePE teaching space is required. Indeed, it is likelythis can be a shared space, also used for otheractivities such as drama or assembly (though not

dining). It should, however, be at least theminimum recommended size of a two-court hall,particularly for those single-stream schools withfull class sizes, or where significant communitydemand for sports facilities is anticipated. Only invery small single-stream schools with much smallerclass sizes, and where there is limited demand forcommunity use, might a smaller activity space(such as a one-court hall) be more appropriate.

Two-streamWith only 23 hours of teaching time available inthe school week, the 28 hours of activity timerequired for two-stream schools means two PEteaching spaces are required. The principal spaceshould be a two-court hall, and this will be usedpredominantly for PE.

The secondary space should be smaller and moresuited to PE by younger children, and to movementand dance-based activities. This space will have alower ceiling height than the main hall and shouldbe designed to provide an intimate, comfortingenvironment for younger children. (See DesignNote 4 from sportscotland’s ‘Secondary SchoolSports Facilities: Designing for School andCommunity Use’ for detailed design advice fora 15m x 15m secondary school dance studio.)A slightly smaller space, designed on the sameprinciples, is likely to be suitable for primaryschools. It should be noted that in a two-streamschool this space will by no means be required forPE at all times, and should therefore be designedas a dual-use space.

Three-streamA three-stream school also requires two spacesfor PE. The minimum recommended requirementfor a three-stream school is identical to that of atwo-stream school: a two-court hall and a smallermovement and dance studio. The requirement,however, for 42 hours of PE per week means thatthese spaces may be almost exclusively used for PE.

Local authorities should also give seriousconsideration to providing larger facilities forthree-stream schools. For curricular PE, theremay be high demand for a relatively large space.Furthermore, the higher numbers of pupils takingpart in after-school activity may require a largermain hall. Finally, facilitating community accessto sports and other facilities in such a large schoolis likely to represent best value for the Council andwill enhance the school’s status as a resource forthe whole community. In such circumstances,

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a subdividable three-court hall can deliver a muchwider range of community activities than a two-court hall. An alternative model for the PE facilitiesfor larger three-stream schools is therefore athree-court hall as the main PE space, and amovement and dance studio as a secondary space.

The following models of facility provision aretherefore recommended by sportscotland:

• One-stream:two-court hall, used for PE and other schoolsubjects (NB: a smaller hall may be acceptablefor very small rural schools with small classsizes and limited community use)

• Two-stream:two-court hall, used predominantly for PE,with a movement and dance studio used forlower school PE and other subjects

• Three-stream (small):two-court hall, used exclusively for PE, with amovement and dance studio used predominantlyfor lower school PE

• Three-stream (large):three-court hall, used exclusively for PE, and amovement and dance studio used predominantlyfor lower school PE

These models provide a guide only. Local authoritiesmust carefully consider the size of schools theyare providing, and all their curricular requirements,before deciding on an appropriate level of provision.In all cases the potential for community usemust also be considered and, for each of themodels above, may justify the provision of moreor larger facilities.

Community demand may even suggest that afour-court hall is justified if there are noalternative public facilities nearby. Such a hallcould be divided into two smaller spaces formany school activities.

Other design considerationsEntrance, reception and layoutMany of the issues relating to these elements ofthe design will be similar to those for secondaryschools, the differences being principally of scaleand degree. Primary school children (and, in manyschools, nursery age children) are much less awareof the hazards in their environment, and designersmust take particular account of safety and childprotection issues.

Access and parking layouts must take account ofthis vulnerability by ensuring low speeds and goodall-round visibility. School security and controllingunauthorised access are also importantconsiderations, and must be carefully plannedif community use of the facilities during the schoolday is to be facilitated. A separate communityentrance may be required.

Although security is an important issue, designersmust take care to design a school that provides asafe environment while remaining accessible to,and allowing integration with, the wider community.

The school entrance and reception area must beprominent and welcoming, but must not be tooimposing in scale or daunting to young children.A friendly, human environment, almost domesticin scale, is required for the entrance, reception,circulation and social areas.

In more remote schools, or those with limitedcommunity use, it may be possible to providesmart-card entry and booking systems to allowuse by authorised clubs and groups without theneed to provide staff at all times.

Community use of a primary school will generallymean a high proportion of use by families of thepupils themselves. This, and the possible existenceof a nursery school on the same campus, meansinfants and toddlers will often accompany parentsand older children. It is essential, therefore,to provide baby changing facilities and ideally acrèche and/or children’s play area if significantnumbers of community users are expected.An area for pram and buggy storage should beprovided. WC cubicles should be large enoughfor a parent and small child together.

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Other uses for PE facilitiesIn most schools, the activity space or spaces willnot be required for PE every hour of the week.It makes sense to consider what other activitiesmay take place in these spaces, and whethertheir design needs adapting to suit such uses.Gatherings of the whole school, for example,can normally take place in the main PE space,providing the school timetable allows for this.

It is important that the physical characteristicsand environmental controls of the activity spacescan accommodate this range of uses. Lighting(natural and artificial), heating and ventilationmust all be adaptable to different user requirementsand numbers. Likewise, the floor must be apurpose-designed sports floor, but must also berobust enough to withstand this range of uses. Designers must also consider whether a stageis required. This is highly desirable for drama,but may also be useful in other circumstancessuch as some public meetings or for schoolassemblies. A stage, however, restricts theavailable floor space and flexibility of the space.Demountable staging may be the solution forsome schools, although this requires significantstorage space and of course takes time to set upand remove. Another possible approach, shownin Drawing 1, is to provide a stage adjacent tothe sports hall, separated by a moveable partition.Such an area can also double up as a dining spacefor the school.

sportscotland recommends that school diningdoes not take place in the same space as PE.The time taken to set up and then remove tablesand chairs encroaches significantly on the timeavailable for PE, and regular moving of equipmentor furniture is likely to quickly damage or degradethe floor. Even after removing the chairs, the floormust be cleaned and dried before subsequent use,both taking up time and presenting a safety risk ifnot done thoroughly. Also, the serving hatches andother design features required for a school diningarea are not appropriate for a sports facility,particularly one available for wider communityuse. A dining area will also need to be at a highertemperature than a PE teaching space, andheating/cooling of the space will take some time.Finally, schools should aim to create a welcomingand pleasant dining environment, to encouragehealthy eating habits in pupils. A sports hall withdining tables is unlikely to provide such anenvironment. Only in very small rural schools withlimited requirements for PE may the same spacebe suitable for dining.

Lined out for Badminton

Full

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Floor markings and hall sizesCommunity sports activity is generally very differentfrom primary school PE, and consequently therequirements for floor markings are alsodifferent.

Formal court markings will not normally be requiredto teach primary school PE. This is clearly the casefor teaching foundation skills such as movement,balance, throwing and catching and so on. Eventhe teaching of more sports-specific skills andprinciples will be in a group or class situation.These therefore normally involve a more flexibleuse of space, rather than being restricted by courtmarkings. For example, sockets on the end wallswill allow a volleyball net to be strung across theentire hall, allowing a greater number of childrento be taught and to take part than would be thecase using a formal volleyball court and net.

In some circumstances, however, ‘mini’ orsmall-sided games will play a part in teaching,and are likely to be useful for extra-curricularand after-school use. Several mini-sided versionsof the main hall-based sports are available:

• Mini-badminton(half a badminton court, split lengthways)

• Mini-basketball(on a scaled down version of a full-court)

• Mini-volleyball(on a standard badminton court)

• Mini-netball(using 1/3 of a standard netball court)

• Short-tennis(on a standard badminton court)

• Unihoc

Services and hall environmentFor general advice, designers should refer tosportscotland’s design guidance for secondaryschool sports facilities, as many issues are commonto both primary and secondary schools. There aresome differences, however. For example, primarychildren often sit on the floor during PE.Under-floor heating should therefore beconsidered, supplemented by high-level gaspowered heaters to raise the air temperaturefor sedentary activities.

For most physical activity, a hall temperatureof around 16ºC will be required, with the abilityto boost temperatures to around 20ºC for moresedentary activities. A minimum lighting levelof 300 lux, with good uniformity levels, shouldbe sufficient for most school and community uses.As with larger sports halls, the walls should havea light reflectance value of around 30% to 50%.Wall colour is not so important in smaller halls,and a variety of colours could be used in the samehall to provide a more lively and stimulatingenvironment for young children.

Both school and community use of the hall arelikely to require music from time to time. Ratherthan using portable equipment, it will be preferableto have an integrated music system set in a recess

Sport 1 or 2-Court Hall 3-Court Hall 4-Court Hall

Sports Possible

Badminton Full Full

Full FullMini

Short Short Short

Mini* Mini Full

Mini* Mini Full

Volleyball

Tennis

Netball

Basketball

BadmintonVolleyball

BadmintonVolleyballBasketballNetball

*Constrained by dimensions of the hall.

The table shows which activities can take place in each size of hall. It should be noted that this relates tomini or full versions of these sports. Teaching these sports to a primary class group will not normally relyon these court markings and hall sizes. The line-markings in the table are possible options, but actualmarkings should be determined by educational requirements and the most common uses of the space.

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in the hall wall, with wall-mounted speakers.This should be easier to use for teachers andinstructors, and prove less of a hazard thanbringing in portable equipment.

Sports equipment and storageAs with secondary schools, equipment should beshared between school and community users.However, primary school children will oftenrequire different sets of equipment from adults.The specialist equipment required includes primarylevel gymnastics and mini-athletics equipment.If there is significant community use of the facilities,separate school and adult sports equipment storesmay be required, as will a separate mat store.

Where appropriate, equipment should be adjustableto meet the different requirements of adults andchildren. For example, badminton and volleyballnets and basketball hoops should be heightadjustable. Mini-basketball, however, uses asmaller hoop and backboard set-up than the fullgame, and in some halls it may make sense tohave both mini and full size hoops.

It is essential to provide sufficient storage for therange of school and community sports equipmentrequired. Although approximately 15% of the floorarea of the activity spaces is likely to be appropriatefor equipment stores, a full assessment of thelikely storage requirements should be undertaken.

Changing accommodationEven today it is unusual to find purpose-designedchanging accommodation in primary schools.Pupils often have to change in the classroomor in the sports hall itself. sportscotland doesnot consider this appropriate in the design of amodern school, and recommends that separatechanging accommodation be provided for boysand girls.

The scale and design of the changing accommodationwill, to a large extent, be determined by theanticipated level of community use. If the PEfacilities are not to be used by the community,then separate boys’ and girls’ changing rooms,each approximately 12m2 in size, should be provided.Each of the changing rooms should have directaccess to a toilet.

Each changing room should be fitted with benches.Pupils will normally bring their sports kit toschool as and when required, but sports shoesmay be kept in the classroom or its associated

storage area. This should be taken into accountwhen designing the school’s classrooms.

Lockers for pupils’ use are not required inchanging rooms - clothes hooks are sufficient.However, because of the varying heights of thechildren, hooks should not be mounted directlyabove the benches, but mounted on a separatewall within the changing room.

If the facilities are to be used by the community,either separate changing accommodation shouldbe provided for adult users or the children’schanging should be modified. However, unlessthe school is to be regularly used by schooland community at the same time, separatechanging accommodation for pupils and adultsis probably unwarranted.

It is more likely that the pupils’ changing facilitieswill be accessed by the community outside schoolhours, and it must therefore be modified to suitthe requirements of both children and adults.In this case, two showers and a drying area shouldbe provided in each changing room. The changingarea should be increased to approximately 14m2 toallow for the inclusion of between 12 and 14 half-height lockers, and two or three full-height lockers.A possible layout is shown in Drawing 02 (Pg 10).

If a three- or four-court hall is provided at theschool, then the changing areas should be largerstill, perhaps with an additional flexible/bufferchanging area (refer to sportscotland designguidance for secondary schools).

A dedicated changing room for people withdisabilities, including toilet and showeringfacilities, should be provided. Baby changingfacilities should be included in this space.

Some community use of the facility, for exampleshort mat bowls, will not require full changingfacilities, but only access to toilets. Many participantswill arrive in their playing clothes and will onlyneed to change shoes. This could take place inthe hall, but on wet days this is not advisable,as water will inevitably be trailed into the hall.To prevent this, sportscotland recommends thata small changing area be created next to theentrance to the hall where participants can changeshoes, leave valuables and hang up overcoats.A bank of quarter-height lockers for shoesand valuables should be provided in this area.A possible layout is shown in Drawing 3 (Pg10).

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Drawing 02: Possible layout of school/community changing area

Drawing 03: Possible layout for supplementary changing space

Designers must also consider how to providechanging accommodation for outdoor activities.Unless there is significant community use of theoutdoor facilities, the indoor changing willprobably be sufficient for school, and occasionalcommunity, use of the outdoor facilities. Schoolswith a synthetic grass court or pitch are morelikely to attract significant levels of outdoor use.

Swimming poolsPrimary school children should ideally be taughtto swim, and water-based activities should formpart of their PE. However, the very low levels ofuse required by a primary school alone will notbe sufficient to justify a pool at a primary school.For most primary schools, therefore, swimminglessons and water-based PE will be delivered ina suitable nearby public or secondary schoolswimming pool.

Playing fieldssportscotland will shortly be producing guidanceon standards for school playing fields, whichwill provide advice on the numbers and typesof pitches and other outdoor sports facilitiesrequired for a range of primary and secondaryschools. Primary school playing fields will beused as both a formal activity space and aninformal play space, and should be open topupils at breaks and lunchtime.

Like indoor activities, full-size sports pitches willseldom be used for the teaching of primary schoolPE. Instead, the skills and principles of outdoorsports will be taught to groups or to a wholeclass. Small-sided versions of the pitch sportsmay also be taught, and will certainly be employedby Active School Co-ordinators.

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Primary school playing fields must therefore bethought of as a flexible resource rather than asone or more sports pitches. The main area may benatural grass, but synthetic grass can accommodatehigher levels of use. Such a surface will usuallyaccommodate football, netball and hockey, andperhaps also basketball and tennis. Syntheticgrass will be particularly useful for after-schoolactivity, and where significant levels of communitydemand may be expected.

Regulations for designersThis document provides guidance on some of theissues designers of primary school sports facilitieswill have to consider, and gives practical advice onthe types and specifications of facilities andequipment required. Designers must also,however, comply with a range of legislation andregulation, including the following:

• School Premises Regulations

• Building Regulations

• The Workplace Health, Safety andWelfare Regulations

• British Standards

• Nursery Regulations

• The Disability Discrimination Act 1995

• National 5-14 Guidelines

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References and further readingAs well as the relevant regulations and legislation,and the list of references provided in ‘SecondarySchool Sports Facilities: Designing for School andCommunity Use’, designers should refer to thefollowing:

Building Our Future:Scotland’s School Estate: School DesignThe Scottish Executive (2003) ISBN 0-7559-0854-6

Building Our Future:Scotland’s School Estate: Core FactsThe Scottish Executive (2003) ISBN 0-7559-0856-2

Building Our Future:Scotland’s School Estate: The 21st Century SchoolThe Scottish Executive (2003) ISBN 0-7559-0857-0

Building Our Future:Scotland’s School Estate: School EstateManagement Plans.The Scottish Executive (2003) ISBN 0-7559-0855-4

Client Guide:Achieving Well Designed Schools Through PFICommission for Architectureand the Built Environment (CABE)

Quality Indicators in the Design of SchoolsThe Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland

Designing Scotland’s SustainableSchools of the FutureThe Lighthouse (2003) ISBN 0 9536533 6 6

AcknowledgementsRobin Anderson and Corin Dougall of JM Architects,who led this project for sportscotland

Jim Stevenson, Education Consultant

Penny Lochhead, PMR Leisure

sportscotlandCaledonia HouseSouth GyleEdinburghEH12 9DQTel: 0131 317 7200Fax: 0131 317 7202www.sportscotland.org.uk

ISBN 1 85060 455 X

PSFB 0604 0.5m

©sportscotland 2004