/>The possibilities of new build
If we are to build a new community centre we will have to demolish the old building and clear the site. Cost estimates for this are £30,000-£40,000.
In this study we focused on pre-fabricated buildings. We asked e-mail five builders with the same query:
We have an existing community centre based on part use of an old, disused primary/secondary school (1900-1970 vintage), on a plot of 0.8 hectares. This is located on the island of Anglesey. We have the rights to lease the building for another 87 years, as part of a charitable trust. There is an opportunity for us to buy the whole school and plot at a low price. The whole school has an internal area of over 500 m2, but is somewhat dilapidated and is totally un-insulated. There is a large car-park with space for over 30 cars, and good access. I attach a ground floor plan of the existing building.
We are investigating what use we can make of any community centre in order to establish how big the centre should be, or even whether we can justify any centre.
We are investigating the cost of refurbishing the existing building to a low heat loss/zero maintenance configuration. That process is making good progress.
We need a cost for a new build building as a comparison and possible option. Looking at new, pre-fab. designs it seems that a bespoke community centre would have advantages of more convenient floor layout. As a guide to what such a project might cost we can assume that we are targeting a community hall with a footprint of 250 m2, which includes one large hall, a second meeting room, a kitchen, an office, a store room and a toilet block capable of catering for between 100 and 150 people.
At this stage I do not want to burden you with preparing any detailed plans, simply a rough guide to the costs of the building methods you use if you can provide this please? I’d also like to know how inclusive your costings are – do they include service connection costs, the foundation slab, planning application, site supervision, etc? If you have any previous examples of a previous build of this size I’d be delighted to receive them .
We got four replies, summarised below:
| Cost/sq metre | Cost Remarks | General Remarks | |
| Kingswell | £2,100 | Turnkey, inc ground works. Demolition excluded. | |
| CotaPlan | £900 | Includes: Modular Building System, delivery, install, plastisol exterior, UPVC Double Glazed windows, steel lined entrance doors, pre finished walls/ceilings, flooring, internal partitions/doors, plumbing, stand alone fire alarm, electrics and heat/cooling to main areas. Excludes: CDM site establishment, demolition of existing structures, foundations, drainage, service connections, ramps/steps, intruder alarms, IT, planning fees, building control fee, furniture, fixtures/fittings, trackway and out of hours working. | Provided no examples of work. Narrative response only. |
| Pine Log | £1,800 | Excludes: any contigency, service connections, all loos furnishings, no landscaping, local authority fees, inflation during build | Will carry out design work only. £2,500+VAT to design to feasability stage, £4,000 to work up to elevations and site plan and thus a planning/building application. Computer modelling would be an extra £750. |
| Benfield | £2,500 | Turnkey price based on £250,000 for 100 sq metre hall | They offer design and development work, right through to full turnkey project. Visited site over Xmas |
A working figure for new-build cost would seem to be £2,000 per sq metre.
A new build with the footprint of the existing school would cost £1,000,000.
