The High School of Dundee is one of Scotland’s oldest schools. Its Meadowside campus is listed, dating back to the 1800s, with historical features like ornate plasterwork, vaulted high ceilings and stained-glass windows.

When the school decided to upgrade its lighting in 2023, the challenge was how to balance history with modern needs, such as reduced emissions and energy usage, and lighting suitable for different teaching needs.

Gregor Bankowski, the school’s Estates and Operations Manager, says: “We identified lighting as an obvious step to reducing our energy consumption and CO2 emissions. But any new lighting had to be sympathetic to, or even enhance the depth of history of our buildings.”

As specialists in education lighting, we designed a system using 1,700 low-energy LEDs with intelligent Organic Response® Lighting controls that adjust lighting based on levels of daylight and room occupancy. Staff also have wireless switches to manage the lighting in their individual classrooms.

Electrical contractor, EW Edwardson, understood the complexities of working with the school’s architecture, so its installation was sensitive and even enhanced features such as ornate ceiling roses. Gregor Bankowski explains: “The new lighting controls are phenomenal and we’re already benefiting from smart energy efficiency that increases the periods when the lights are switched off. We save more energy by dimming the lighting as this requires less power.”