The new Science Centre opened for teaching last December. The innovative design of the centre will put a real wow factor into science education at Bethany.

 

Gone are the old labs, scattered over the campus with their dark iroko benches and flimsy surroundings.  In their place is a modern, state of the art, future proofed building which also sets high standards in energy efficiency and conservation.

From the moment you step into the entrance, you are surrounded by eye-catching scientific images of Saturn's rings and caffeine crystals, amongst others.  In the main foyer there are more photographs and a screen displaying pupils working in the labs or on a trip, competitions, the latest weather and an amazing animal of the week.  There is also a 9m long DNA molecule along one wall.

At the end of the foyer is a 1.9m fish tank through which you can see the Sixth Form study room.  Here the A level scientists are able to spend their Private Study lessons doing their prep or revising.



The room is equipped with science resources, university information and courses and science staff are often on hand for extra help.

There are six laboratories which have been colour coded according to their discipline; yellow for Biology, red for Chemistry and blue for Physics.   The sheer size of each lab is immediately striking.  Each has light grey corian surfaces with plenty of cupboards and storage systems.  The labs have been designed specifically with our students in mind.  The aim was to enhance creative, dynamic teaching and learning styles, while meeting all health and safety standards for practical work.  Each lab has four octagonal pods with side benches, allowing pupils to face the board during theory and then move to the opposite side for practical activities.

For those pupils who are physical learners, there are three large models of a heart, an atom and an electric circuit embedded in the floors of three labs.  The heart, for example, allows pupils to learn the flow of blood through the circulatory system by acting as red blood cells.  Pupils walk through the chambers of the heart describing where they are and what happens there.

Each lab has plenty of sockets and gas taps with a state of the art safety system.  The pupils are undoubtedly impressed by the new Centre.  While the Science staff will admit that ultimately it is the quality of teaching which makes the difference, it is clear that the pupils have been inspired by their new surroundings.

 

With even more practicals than before, the prep room is busy.  The Head of Science says that the design of the prep room is often overlooked.  Being the same size as one of the labs, our impressive new prep room has plenty of room for trialling experiments and plenty of clear storage facilities.  A technician's dream ....

While the latest trend is for the use of green technology, it was prudent to demonstrate this in the build.  The careful insulation of the building has led to minimal use of gas to heat it.  The impressive heating and cooling system will eventually be used to draw heat from the building in the summer to heat the swimming pool.  The solar panels heat the water and the solar pipes light the upstairs corridor.  The ICT suite has been moved into the Science Centre and there is also a fabulous multi-purpose room for activities, lectures and functions.