A new case study, published by the trade body Interpave, reviews the successful long-term use of concrete block permeable paving around a Milton Keynes School, including benefits for wildlife and simple maintenance.
The Hazeley Academy is a purpose-built secondary school incorporating a sustainable drainage system (SuDS) designed by Robert Bray Associates with extensive areas of concrete block permeable paving installed around 10-years ago.
It exemplifies the use of permeable paving in distinct compartments with accessible flow controls to provide demonstrable water storage, manage sloping sites and optimise pollution removal.
The concrete block permeable paving has been shown to deliver a controlled flow of clean water for wildlife habitats such as ponds. In particular, research showed an overall post-development increase in the population of protected Great Crested Newts native to the site and suggested that "˜Favourable Conservation Status' has been achieved.
Experience of the Academy Site Manager demonstrates that the concrete block permeable paving is also a problem-free technology over the longer term, able to accept roof water and runoff from adjacent sealed paving. Care of the permeable paving forms a part of the general maintenance programme for the Academy, carried out by a small non-specialist team using day-to-day equipment.
The case study is free to download from
www.paving.org.uk where news of the latest developments in SuDS, technical guidelines and various case studies are also available.
