Milton Keynes City Council set out to construct a new specialist teaching unit at St Paul’s Catholic School, which would expand the number of local school places and support available for young people with special education needs and disabilities (SEND).

Plans for the new dedicated SEND unit included three new classrooms, providing places for an additional 24 pupils, including teaching spaces with additional breakout areas, intervention rooms, a communal area, and a garden.

Choosing the right roofing solution

To ensure the perfect roofing finish, project architect, Urban Fabric Architects, requested tile samples from Marley, before deciding to specify its full roof system – including Acme Single Camber clay plain tiles in the Red Smooth colourway – across the new unit’s 600sq m roof space.

“With the project being funded by a local authority, it was really important we were able to deliver a cost-effective, yet high-quality, roofing solution for the St Paul’s Catholic School,” explains Rory Fenton, specification manager at Marley.

“Our full roof system delivered exactly that, combining the benefits of our Acme Single Camber clay plain tiles, JB Red roofing battens, vapour-permeable underlay, ventilation, and ridges to create a strong, durable roofing solution.”

As an added benefit, Marley’s full roof system comes with a 15-year warranty – guaranteeing the roof’s performance and quality for years to come.

“The full roof system warranty offers the ultimate peace of mind for Milton Keynes City Council, so it can be confident that the final system is built to last, alleviating any potential future maintenance concerns,” said Fenton.

Marley’s Acme Single Camber clay plain tiles were the perfect finish for the project’s roof – offering all the benefits and visual appeal of a strong, natural clay roof, combined with cutting-edge modern production techniques.

And the Red Smooth colourway was selected to match the site’s existing units, while also keeping in touch with the local roofing vernacular and planning requirements.

A technical partner

Due to the project’s unique design, several roof windows and in-roof ventilation was required, which created roof specification challenges that needed to be overcome.

Fenton said: “Our technical team worked closely with the architects to recommend the best products to meet the specific requirements and create a quality roof system.

“This created its own specification challenges, as it required a versatile tile that can work at both shallow and steep pitches.

“Marley’s Acme Single Camber clay plain tile was able to meet this need perfectly – meaning the same tile could be used across the whole roof for a consistent finish.”

Supporting sustainability ambitions

As a local authority, Milton Keynes City Council also needed to ensure that the new SEND unit supported its sustainability ambitions.

Addressing this need, Marley’s Acme Single Camber clay plain tiles are accredited to the BES 6001 Framework Standard for Responsible Sourcing, providing assurance that its materials are ethically sourced.

Additionally, Marley offers Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) across its entire clay, concrete tile ranges, together with its existing solar PV range, supporting local authorities with informed decision making aligned with sustainability targets.