COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2015
APPLICATON FORM 02
PLEASE PROVIDE SOME DETAILS ABOUT YOUR APPLICATION:
CATEGORY APPLIED
FOR
PROJECT NAME
(as you wish to see it published)
Category 4: Strong and sustainable communities
The Lasswade Centre: at the heart of this Midlothian community
LEAD ORGANISATION Midlothian Council
DEPARTMENT/TEAM Property and facilities
Scottish Futures Trust
BAM Construction
PARTICIPANT NAMES
OR PARTNER
ORGANISATIONS
CONTACT NAME Garry Sheret
CONTACT DETAILS
0131 561 5249
Garry.sheret@midlothian.gov.uk
CAN WE PUBLISH THIS APPLICATION FORM ON OUR WEBSITE? YES

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2015
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In one short paragraph please describe this project is about, what it has achieved, and why it is delivering excellence.
The Lasswade Centre in Bonnyrigg is the end product of an innovative pilot project involving Scottish
Futures Trust and East Renfrewshire and Midlothian councils. By bringing the two councils together to jointly purchase two schools (Eastwood High and the Lasswade Centre), this groundbreaking initiative has established a best practice model that has not only saved more than £4 million, thanks to its partnership approach, but is also being adopted or replicated by other across Scotland councils. From the earliest stage, the focus of the Lasswade project has been on producing a building that exceeds the current and future needs of the local community. The project team fully consulted and engaged with local people on the design and facilities. Community engagement also extended to making sure as many employment and educational benefits were realised as possible, from giving jobs and contracts to local trades people to allowing senior pupils and staff to make key decisions about layouts and colours. Incorporating facilities including the school, library, gymnastics centre, 25m pool, crèche and community cinema under one roof, makes life easier for local customers and is helping bring people together. Memberships of its library and gym have soared compared with numbers using the facilities the centre replaced. Feedback from the community suggests that the hub approach has strengthened community ties. Meanwhile, its innovative design means the centre is one of the most energy efficient public buildings in Scotland, ready to serve the needs of the community for decades to come.
PLANNING
What is your project about, and why is it important? What are you aiming to achieve, and how does this fit with the bigger picture? Does it tackle the issues
that matter most to your community or your organisation?
On a Scotland-wide scale, the project is about working in partnership with other organisations including the
SFT, to achieve the very best value for our investment while establishing a best practice model that can be used across the country. Such is the success of this approach, that SFT’s work has delivered 12 more Scottish schools within the existing budget. In Midlothian, we are already developing our next high school project,
Newbattle, using similar design principles.
At a local level, the aim has been to maximise the quality of life for local people, including giving our pupils the best start in life. For example, a follow up report in March 2014 by Education Scotland found “young people are proud of, and enjoy working with many new resources in a new school building, which offers them an improved environment for learning”. Making sure as many pupils as possible go on to ‘positive destinations’ on leaving school such as a job, apprenticeship, or further education is one of three priorities the council has signed up to as part of the multi-agency agreement, the Single Midlothian Plan.
Families too are benefitting from our ‘community hub’. While previously parents travelled round various building to drop children off for activities, the new building has all the facilities under one roof. This gives parents time for themselves, whether it is going for a swim, using the gym, taking a book from the library or enjoying a Costa coffee in our cafe. This improved service also makes it easier for families to enjoy spending time together, with grandparents joining families to have lunch in the cafe and engage in activities as a family.
Meanwhile, the older generation are joining pensioner’s groups, some of which work on inter-generational projects with the school to help maintain the eco garden and provide information and support on local history matters.
Local people say the new facility acts like the high street 30 years ago encouraging users to stop for a chat and develop new ties and friendships. A good example is a group of widows who now meet every morning in the cafe to have a coffee together and pick up news through the internet. The new centre has given these

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DELIVERING
How have you carried out your project? How did you ensure that this was done effectively? What are you doing to continue to improve?
Built by BAM Construction, work started in 2011 and both schools were handed over to the councils in 2013, ready for the start of the new school term. The community were involved from the start of the project in all aspects of its development. A key stakeholder list was developed which was used to consult regularly with
28 groups from pupils to residents. Their input into how the building would be used helped shape the design of the centre and resulted in a building which has surpassed the community’s expectations.
The building was also used to engage local pupils. For example, children from the school were given regular tours of the site. Pupils also compiled news reports about the building’s progress for the BBC’s schools’ news website. The project team’s quantity surveyors went into maths classes to demonstrate how maths is applied in the workplace while different trades instructed pupils on how they work. This proved particularly useful to pupils who were considering apprenticeships but were unsure which jobs to pursue. Meanwhile, the design and construction team attended eco committee meeting at the school giving presentations on the environmental solutions incorporated within the project.
To maximise the economic impact of the project and to help create a longer term financial boost to the local community, areas of which are deprived, every member of Midlothian’s Chamber of Commerce was invited to attend a ‘meet the buyer events’ with the main contractor. As a result, nearly £8 million of construction work was awarded to firms with a Midlothian postcode and 93% of the construction value was spent within a 50 mile radius of the school.
Two senior pupils at Lasswade joined BAM on graduate training programmes and both pupils are now attending university on a part time basis. At the end of their course they will be taken through their professional memberships.
Local trades people looking for work were invited to leave their details with the site reception. As subcontractors came on board, they were then given access to the database to enable them to employ local people. Midlothian Council also helped by offering free CSCS training to those who required it.
INNOVATION &
LEADING PRACTICE
Why is your project innovative? How is it helping to prepare for the future? What is happening to help other organisations benefit from your approach?
The project is innovative on a number of levels. Thanks to its eco-friendly design, it is one of the most energy efficient public buildings in Scotland. Increased insulation – a 30% improvement on existing Scottish
Building Standards – retains significant amounts of heat, therefore keeping costs down. The vast amounts of glass allow the facility absorb natural light. Individual lights are only activated when degrees of darkness trigger sensors. Meanwhile, the concrete in the ceiling retains and holds onto heat for maximum warmth and minimal costs.
The success of this pilot project is attracting interest from across Scotland and further afield. All 32 Scottish local authorities have toured the centre to learn from this innovative scheme. Many of them are now using the model for future school and community projects. The Northern Irish Assembly came to the school to find out more about this partnership approach and a visit is due within the next few days from Welsh
Assembly representatives.

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The building is also used by a number of wider community groups and initiatives. Its state-of-the art gymnastics academy is helping train potential future Olympians from across the country while the
Community Safety Partnership used the library during Child Safety Week to exhibit award-winning art competition entries about keeping children safe.
RESULTS & IMPACT
What impact are you having, or expect to have? How are you measuring this, and what does this tell you? Are you delivering what you set out to achieve?
The new Lasswade Centre has seen a dramatic rise in the number of people using its leisure and library facilities.
From April to the end of September 2014, a total of 82,953 customers used its leisure facilities. This figure is not far behind the total number of customers (86,966) – who used the facilities in the old centre during the whole of 2012/13.
The centre offers 91 leisure activities and classes suitable for a wide range of age groups. These include preschool gymnastics, Pilates, Teenzone fitness classes, Aquafit and aerobics for people aged 50 plus.
And library usage has more than doubled with 4,620 5,220 book lovers visiting the old Bonnyrigg Library in
May 2013 compared with 10,914 visits to the new Lasswade Centre library in May 2014. The library organises a number of events from weekly Bookbug sessions with toddlers and carers to adult reading.
Dance a Book, where instructors encourage children to dance their favourite storybook characters, is proving popular and recently 35 people came along to an open evening by Community Learning and
Development to find out more, and sign up for, adult learning classes.
The success of the centre can also be measured by the popularity of the Costa coffee internet cafe. Not only has it created three full-time equivalent jobs for local people but its income for its first year was £240,000, more than double expected returns. Food on offer includes healthy choice sandwiches and paninis, fruit and breakfast cereals.
Among the groups using the facility is the Lasswade Gymnastics Club which has five young members of the team representing Scotland for the first time at the British National Elite Grand Finals in November. Parent
Stella Smith says a new coach has helped the team to success. However, she adds: “ I would say that the new facilities have definitely helped as well. “
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