Temporary counting facilities installed for Ealing Council

essential election infrastructure for the Mayor of London and London Assembly elections

Who – Ealing Council (London Borough of Ealing)

Where – Ealing

Size – 3,750 sqm

Use – Election Infrastructure

Over a year in planning, Field and Lawn worked alongside the client to provide one of the largest temporary counting facilities in the South for the Mayor of London and London Assembly elections.

Requirements

We were asked by a long-standing client about the possibility of expanding their counting capacity for the local election counts in May. This year, the client had been asked to count votes from neighbouring boroughs and required significantly more space. The client required our support and expertise to secure a licence for the challenging build and a bespoke solution to accommodate 800 staff.

Solution

Our Project Manager worked with the client to undertake site visits to establish a suitable location. Following this, a bespoke marquee layout was agreed for the temporary counting facilities, with two main structures proposed, measuring 25m x 85m and 20m x 70m. The event marquees were completed with cassette flooring, bespoke ramps, and a full HVAC system.

We had to carefully plan every element of the build programme, working under a strict licencing agreement and curfews due to working in a public park. Detailed logistical plans together with 3D visuals were created and agreed with the client. We also mitigated risks to surrounding trees and their canopies. Finally, we condensed the programme into a five-day window and kept in constant dialogue with local community to minimise disruption.

Even though we had a limited build time and were working in a complex open public park, the marquees were ready to handover to the client well before the deadline.

Specification

Full HVAC
Internal and external lighting
Glazed pedestrian doors with push bar opening
Internal partitioning
Access ramps
Entrance canopy
Event trackway

Event Power

We were also responsible for providing heating, using four 150kw and four 235kw heaters with overhead ducting providing an efficient and effective heating solution.

Feedback:

"I just wanted to say a big thank you to you and the team at F&L for all of your help in delivering this year’s election count. Your help in contributing to the planning application was hugely appreciated. The logistics of the build and derig all went very smoothly so thank you also for being so supportive and quick to respond to what probably seemed like endless queries and requests! Please do also pass on our thanks to Lee and the whole crew who worked on site. The whole process went like clockwork and it was reassuring knowing that the build was in safe hands. We obviously have the parliamentary election coming up at some point over the next few months so I have no doubt that we’ll be in touch then. Thank you once again!"