External improvement works at Betws Life Centre

Description

Awen operates Betws Life Centre under a partnership agreement backed up by a twenty-year lease with Bridgend County Borough Council. The centre is currently home to Betws Library, the library service’s book processing team, an independently-run café, a community hall and bookable meeting rooms. In addition, a day nursery occupies an adjoining building to the main hall. Betws Life Centre is a genuinely ‘cradle to grave’ service, a place for all the community to meet, learn and read; from bounce and rhyme sessions for babies and mums to senior citizens bingo, from baby showers to wakes, the centre is at the heart of the community for all the community. In the five years of its operations to date Awen has invested heavily in the Life Centre for the benefit of the community of Betws. The investment has primarily been in the interior of the building and has included works such as improving the café and foyer, renewing the ceiling to the stage and installing new boilers. Awen is managing this project in partnership with Garw Valley Community Council to improve the exterior of the building so that it presents a welcoming and attractive face to the people of Betws. In spite of the investment made by Awen and its partners in improving the building and making it warm, watertight and safe for its users there remains a job of work to do to make Betws Life Centre and its surroundings more attractive, both for existing users and for potential ones, and thus securing the centre’s ongoing sustainability. The exterior of the building, the car park and grounds are in need of upgrading and Awen Cultural Trust and the Garw Valley Community Council are looking for a contractor who can deliver a scheme of works that taken together will showcase Betws Life Centre to the people of the village. 2.2 PROJECT BRIEF: The specification for the project is expected to include the following elements. Precise requirements should be discussed by contacting David Chambers (contact details above): • Car park Handrail – Supply and fit a single galvanised pedestrian DDA compliant handrail to the pathway running along the side of the car park • Take out and remove from site 16 existing concrete bollards and make good the surface • Lighting – upgrade and add LED lights to existing external lights • Car Park re-surfacing – Road sweep existing car park approx. 668m2 and remove arisings, adjust drain cover levels and realign 4 kerbs. • Supply and lay tack coat, supply and lay 25mm minimum of course wearing tarmac to surface. Reinstate all line markings • Painting – clean down and paint exterior concrete wall finish on the front and side elevations with appropriate paint product • Jet wash emergency stairs and paint nose treads with high vis non-slip paint • Remove existing concrete canopy & supply and fit a small new canopy over doors to the side elevation • Soft Landscaping – Clear all overgrowth, supply and lay bark to exposed soil surfaces, install approx. 40m of privet hedging and 4 Silver Birch trees Potential contractors are requested to cost the individual elements within their submissions as the scope of the project may have to be reduced to stay within budget.