Abbey Gate College

Abbey Gate College is an independent co-educational day school funded some twenty five years ago by the Deeside House Educational Trust. The College provides a full academic, sporting and cultural education to pupils between the ages of four and nineteen on two sites. The junior school occupies the former village school at Aldford and the senior school is located at Saighton Grange, a fine sandstone stately home belonging to the Grosvenor family.

Over the years we have assisted the College in expanding and improving its accommodation with a new Science Laboratory and a Sports Hall. The College’s third major project the provision of an Arts and Media Centre was completed in 2003. A new stand-alone building was provided to creatively link the performing and visual arts with a centre for Information and Communication Technology.

The siting and design of the new centre has required careful negotiations with the Local Planning Authority as the main building, The Grange is of historic significance and has a Grade 1 Listed tower. The Arts and Media Centre was designed to sit modestly within the rural environment, utilising brickwork and timber to match its neighbours. The accommodation is housed in an extremely cost effective envelope and the rational basis of the plan allows for future expansion.