The collaboration between Shireland Collegiate Academy Trust and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) marks a radical new approach to music education, innovatively addressing the much-publicised decline in the position of the creative arts in many schools. The Academy’s design is a complete internal remodelling of an existing five- storey office building, providing high quality facilities to support a world-class music education for 870 students in the West Midlands. The Academy accommodates teaching areas for the new secondary school and sixth form, alongside a new sports building on an adjacent road. The retrofit involved leaving the main structure of the building untouched, including the existing fabric, external cladding, the full- height atrium at the core of the building, and the internal stairwells. The open plan office space surrounding the atrium has been refitted and repurposed, while the carpark has been converted into an outdoor social space for students. The triple-height performance hall, built within the original atrium space, serves as a centrepiece for the Academy, accommodating fixed seating for 300 people. The hall is directly adjacent to the Drama Studio which can act as a green room during performances. ADP has also included audio-visual experience rooms which double as immersive spaces for SEN pupils. Claire Mantle, Schools Sector Director at ADP Architecture commented: We are honoured to be part of such a truly inspirational project. The project was driven by a vision for equal opportunities for every child, no matter where they are from, and as a team we were all excited to be behind delivering this amazing school. Emma Stenning, Chief Executive at CBSO added: “With state-provided music education in the UK at a crisis point, and our orchestras acknowledging that something must be done to make our musical forces more representative of the communities they serve, what better way to respond than opening a school that will immerse its pupils in music.”