Project overview

Shireland CBSO Academy

Shireland CBSO Academy is an exciting new non-selective secondary academy serving Sandwell and the West Midlands, which opened in September 2023 to year Seven.

The Academy has been developed by Shireland Collegiate Academy Trust in partnership with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), and it’s the first state school in the country to form a partnership of this kind with a professional orchestra.

Solution

The client’s vision was to incorporate a new professional-style theatre as part of the new build project. Working closely with the design team from the outset, we designed a fixed tiering that would optimise sightlines and provide an immersive environment for school productions to take place. As with any construction project, there were challenges along the way. The fixed tiering had to be built over storerooms at floor level, this was relatively easy to overcome with the customisable design of our steel tiering structure.

To ensure a quiet environment for performers, the steel structure was clad with high-quality 24mm birch plywood with our durable Metro chair installed as the seat type. Hopefully, this will be a facility to be enjoyed for years to come, producing the next generation of talented performers.