Performance plus bollards illuminate school

The challenge

EKO Pathways is a special educational needs primary and secondary school based in East Ham, London, which caters for children and young people with social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH).

Five years ago, London Borough of Newham joined forces with architects Rivington Street Studio to build a brand-new secondary school on a brownfield site.

The new building was to provide generous, flexible classrooms and specialist teaching resource areas, calming spaces and break-out areas in the extensive external landscape. A sympathetic external lighting design was required to help meet the buildings objectives.

Clients and partners

  • Client

    L Harvey and Sons

  • Client

    David Miles and Partners

  • Main contractor

    Jerram Falkus Construction Ltd

  • Architect

    Rivington Street Studios

Key project requirements

  • Enhance the appearance of the building and provide sufficient light to the walkways.
  • Use LED to save energy and provide longer maintenance periods.
  • Controlled using both dusk to dawn sensors and time switches.
  • Fully compliant with BS 7671.
  • Prevent light pollution.

The solution

The final lighting scheme consists of Red Dot award winning, Ren Performance Plus 4000K bollards for the walkways, spaced at an average of 10-12m apart.

While Kirium Pro 1 4000K luminaires on 6M Telford columns were selected for the general area and car park lighting.

Ren delivers a low energy (336lm) exceptionally uniform lighting solution in an architecturally centric form – clean and unfussy – complementary to the new modern school building.

Its comfortable, ambient light provides enhanced vertical illumination for facial recognition, overcoming the low performance sometimes expected with bollard lighting.

Emergency versions of the Kirium Pro 1 luminaires provide 3-hour backup lighting, satisfying the requirements of BS 5266.

Both luminaires are fitted with dusk to dawn sensors and time switch controls which turn them on/off during set times to prevent unwanted wasted light; with light pollution prevented through precision optics directing light to where needed; with minimal upward light.

“Ren provides subtle route wayfinding within a robust context. Its flat-screen optical system, with an additional area of diffused light, represents a real innovative solution over existing bollards.”

David Tucker, Director at Rivington Street Studios

Products featured