The Northwest Skills Academy

In October 2007 Birmingham’s North WestSkills Academy was opened. The 3,270m2College houses workshops, teaching andlearning space for construction industry andautomotive training. The building is the latestacademy by City College, Birmingham and isthe most advanced, of a series of energyefficient academies (see School Building Issue17, 2007). Having reduced energy demand toa practical minimum, the next stage in theevolution of the College’s academies was toincorporate renewable energy into the design.Throughout the project, the client was keento integrate renewable energy technologiesinto the building as much as possible so thatthe building could be a showcase project anda real focal point for local community.