A school’s physical environment plays a vital role in enhancing learning and teaching experiences. Currently, there is a growing body of literature indicating the critical impacts a school’s physical environment can effect on students and teachers. However, far too little attention has been paid to this issue, not excluding public schools in Kuwait. This research investigates the impact of the physical environment on learning and teaching behaviour, performance and outcomes in Kuwaiti intermediate public schools. It evaluates the quality of architectural characteristics of school buildings, and the classroom interior features in term of spatial, visual, acoustic, thermal and personal environmental aspects. A mixed methods approach was adopted to efficiently assess the quality of learning environments. The documented case studies consist of comprehensive figures consolidated from five public schools by three methods. A physical survey was designed to assess the condition of school buildings and classroom environments. The observation helped to measure the influence interior classroom environments exerted on students’ and teachers’ performance and behaviour. Concomitantly, a school inventory survey (questionnaires) were also designed to represent the students’, teachers’ and school administrators’ concerns and feedback regarding their school environment. In addition, a qualitative semi-structured interview was conducted with a Ministry of Education official, who generously provided further insight into the case studies’ results. Comparative analysis findings from this study indicate several contributions to the current literature. Firstly, results revealed that the effective quality of the learning environment identified a positive impact on learning and teaching performance and behaviour. Secondly, the results identified many inadequacies and weaknesses within the architectural system adopted in Kuwaiti schools. Thirdly, this study revealed that the lack of a proper protocol within the Ministry of Education in Kuwait imposed a negative influence on school design quality. The study concludes with a description of more specific outcomes pertinent to the quality of physical features, as well as recommendations for further studies towards improving the school learning environment in Kuwait.

Private Finance Initiative (PFI) has become a major procurement method in the UK and worldwide. The number of signed PFI deals is growing, but competition is restricted to those companies that are able to afford the initial investment. The bidding cost of PFI projects are high, and bidding companies are not compensated if the client does not award them the project. This is the reason behind several recent high-profile tender xvithdra« als. and is considered a major barrier for private companies wanting to take part in the bidding process. There is an obvious need for a tool to enable construction organizations to participate in PFI projects; one that can support these organizations in a decision-making process that is compatible with their project selection strategies, and will allow them to bid for PFI projects with clearer goals and reduced costs. A computer-based financial model was developed to predict the cost and cash flow of PFI projects, enabling project teams to assess investment decisions at the tendering stage. The proposed model consists of four modules to identify the required building area, predict the construction cost, distribute the occupancy cost, and predict the cash flow of the project. The output of the model provides the project investment results, such as the Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR), payback period and investment growth ratio. The model can predict the unitary payment but also allows the user to define the unitary payment. The reports of the model contain the cash flow and investment ratio for both types of unitary payment. The model attempts to provide the information required to assess the feasibility and affordability of the project. It gives the private sector the chance to assess the project before they spend unrecoupable funds on the project. It allows the public sector to determine the project cost, cash flow, unitary charge, and provide the information to be used for the Public Sector Comparator. The data required for the development of the model was collected from different sources. The model was initially developed on spreadsheet software: the final version was transformed into a web-based model using the Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) and Javascript programming languages. The completed model was then sent to many practitioners for validation and assessment of both the concept and numerical application. The responses received show the valuable role the model could play in PFI projects.

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Situated understandings of identity have gained prominence in the organisational studies litera-ture. Through the guiding works of Lefebvre and Ibarra this thesis explores the relationship be-tween organisational space and occupational identity through an empirical study of two schools in the UK. Narratives are collected using visual prompts to examine individuals’ lived experiences in the workplace. My rich data allow me to bring to the fore and unpack how physical changes form and transform occupational sense of self. In particular, my findings indicate that space is involved in the formation of occupational identity in different ways, namely, by giving a sense of continuity to employees, assisting in the development of a sense of belonging and upholding in-group identity, providing employees with a sense of expectations and idealised performances, and sustaining hi-erarchy by establishing a daily routine that excludes and isolates groups of workers. This study makes three main contributions. First, through Lefebvre’s lens, it discusses how identity is mediated through space and discusses the politicisation of space and shows that space can be used to emphasise or interrupt power relations in the workplace. Secondly, through application of Lefebvre’s work this study explains tensions created through spatial change and the implications that these have for the formation of occupational identity. Thirdly, this study takes Lefebvre’s con-cern with tensions one step further by unpacking the complications posed by these for the for-mation, reflection and modification of occupational identity. To make sense of this, Ibarra’s work has been introduced to argue that space is instrumental in reflecting and formulating new, some-times provisional, sometimes conflicting, occupational identities and this leads to ambivalence and ambiguity in the profession. This study highlights the importance of not treating space simply in terms of walls and physical ap-pearance. Space has a special meaning for employees and is a tool that allows them to express their sense of professional self by desiring, imagining and planning a physical space that corre-sponds to their professional role. When space is taken away from professionals, they create their own physical boundaries that send messages to outsiders that they have control of their profes-sion. They do this in order to protect their professional autonomy, feel noticed at the workplace and to imprint parts of their personality according to their professional needs.

Through collaborative work with Cornwall Council, this AHRC funded project has produced an in-depth study of the design of secondary school outdoor landscapes linking two areas of research – landscape design and cultural geography. It explores the politics underpinning the design, construction, use and function of the outdoor landscapes of secondary schools in Cornwall, focusing on the extent of active participation of children and young people in these processes. Contemporary research has illustrated that outdoor spaces are essential to the development and wellbeing of young people as they are places in which children can play or have fun whilst they experiment with their identity, learn to socialise and participate in informal education. This thesis examines the role children and young people may have had and their potential in helping to formulate the design and implementation of outdoor spaces, alongside planners, garden designers, teachers and other interested parties. There are three linked aims. • Exploration of the politics underpinning the design, redesign, use and function of the outdoor landscapes of secondary schools. Here, “politics” refer to the complex negotiations between people, practicalities (policy priorities, management) and school strategic vision and ethos (including the role of student voice). • Understand more about the local spatialities of childhood of secondary school age children in order to: i) explain the politics of design; and ii) propose a more nuanced approach to understanding the varying needs and expectations of secondary school-age children. By participatory methods, interviews and observations I was able to note the use and functionality of the grounds by and for pupils, teachers and site managers. • Using an understanding of the politics of design in Cornwall’s secondary schools, and with greater awareness of the spatialities of childhood, develop recommendations for evaluation of secondary school outdoor landscapes via a ‘school’s biography’ approach. While policy-facing literature contemplates the educational function of school spaces in the secondary sector, this research broadens the view of children and young people’s relationship with secondary school outdoor spaces, emphasizing the relationality between groups of children, and children and others. This project proposes work which is attentive to how constructions of childhood are achieved in practice, beyond the contingencies of policy making and educational practices. The extent to which school grounds meet pupils’ needs is a reflection of school ethos and the relative status of children and young people in the decision making process.

The UK government, under the Primary Capital Programme, is planning to rebuild or refurbish approximately half of all primary schools by 2022/23. The aim is to create primary schools that are equipped for 21st century teaching and learning. Around £7 billion will be invested in the scheme with £1.9 billion of the budget being spent 2008-11, £650 million for all local authorities in 2009-10 and £1.1 billion in 2010-11. However, this substantial investment will only meet the target of providing a 21st century educational environment, with opportunities for exemplary teaching and learning, if the design of new and refurbished schools is fit for this purpose. The research set out to answer the question ‘How can all user groups be involved in the evaluation of newly built primary schools?’ This question was addressed by achieving the aim of developing a post-occupancy evaluation toolkit specifically for primary schools which accounted for the views of all stakeholders. The research focussed on primary schools in the city of Coventry in the UK West Midlands and was conducted in two phases: an examination of schools built before the introduction of a model brief in 1996 and an evaluation of schools that were built using its guidance. The findings from the initial case studies indicated issues to be addressed in the design of the toolkit. Following the initial case studies in pre-1996 schools, the research focussed on five recently built primary schools that were constructed according to the guidelines contained in Coventry’s model brief. At the time of commencing the research, six primary schools had been built using this framework. However, there had been no attempt to evaluate the schools to establish whether they met the needs of all stakeholders. The post-occupancy evaluation toolkit that was developed took a multi-stakeholder perspective on primary school builds and resulted in findings which indicate the variability in responses between different stakeholder groups and schools. The research concluded that the post-occupancy toolkit can provide information on school buildings, from a multi-stakeholder perspective, which may be useful architects and designers. It also proposes an approach to primary school design which accounts for the variability in the needs of diverse stakeholder groups and the individuality of each school, including their geographical location.