Marshalls Park Academy, Romford

With a planned continual growth and increase in student intake over the course of the next five years, Marshalls Park Academy in Romford was gradually outgrowing its existing building design – so the requirement for a new build extension had never been greater. This was also true of the need for additional dining capacity, with the rising pupil numbers causing overcrowding in the school canteen.

To overcome this, with a cost effective solution, two impressive dining canopies were installed covering a total of 507m2. The project began in 2019 with the first of two TRITON Maxx-A canopies being installed, transforming an underutilised outside area into a valuable all-weather space for busy lunch and break times.

The semi-enclosed structure with its polycarbonate front panels provides students with a large open dining area and social space to enjoy the variety of food on offer from the food pod housed within, while providing shelter from the rain and protection from the sun and UV rays. The addition of the snack shack in the new outside covered area helps to reduce pressure on the canteen and increase revenue for the school.

In 2020 the second TRITON canopy was completed to help with the demand of increasing pupil numbers. Its toughened glass panels to the front help create a bright and airy, and highly effective new school dining canopy, offering year-round protection from the elements. The powder coated steel framework on both canopies is finished in matching traffic grey A, enabling the structures to complement each other and integrate seamlessly with the surrounding architecture. 

Both new dining areas present impressive and stylish social spaces for students and staff alike, and offer a substantial increase in dining space for a fraction of the cost for a full build extension. Working to a timeframe over the summer holidays, our team was able to keep disruption to an absolute minimum.