Excellent progress is being made with the refurbishment of 44 Member bedrooms in the Ross Wing of the main building at St Margaret's College.
The College has been an extremely busy place since examinations ended in mid-November. Not only have various conferences taken place at the College in the last month but an ambitious refurbishment programme got underway as soon as Members departed at the end of their academic year.
Floors RB and RC were entirely (and quickly!) gutted before the building of the new rooms could get underway. The building company, Stevenson and Williams, have made excellent progress and some rooms have already been painted. Delivery of the new custom-made furniture began yesterday and had to be craned up on to a special scaffolding platform before being carried in to the building through a window.
As part of the refurbishment programme, a new fire safety system is being installed, together with modern electrical and data cabling. The old sash windows have all been retrofitted with double glazing and all rooms are being well-insulated. LED lighting will also be installed throughout including the corridors which will also receive new wallpaper. New carpet will be laid in each bedroom too.
The first stage of the refurbishment programme began in the summer of 2015/16 when the old coal boiler in the basement was decommissioned and replaced by a medium temperature hot water system. Stage two occurred during the 2016/17 summer and involved refurbishing 19 rooms on the first floor. Once the upcoming refurbishment (Stage three) is complete, the fourth and final stage (41 bedrooms) can occur, which is planned for the summer of 2018/19.
A few photos of the building progress are included with this article. All the work is on schedule and the rooms will be ready for Members when they arrive in February 2018.
(Story by the Master, Dr Charles Tustin)
