Working for a long standing client, the project provides a large scale arts and humanities facility to the Emanuel School in Battersea, London. The project construction value was £6m and a new build gross internal floor area off just under 1200sqm. On site for around 21 months, the project comprises a 3 storey new building with complex level changes designed to connect two existing blocks, as well as refurbishment of parts of the Victorian school building to create a number of additional classrooms.
In addition to classrooms for economics, history and geography, the new building includes specialist print making facilities, a dark room, sculpture and paint- ing classrooms, ceramics facilities including a kiln room, and a dedicated film studio as well as acoustically separated music practice rooms. The range of facilities necessitated the incorporation of complex building services and carefully coordinated structural, services and architectural design to meet the acoustic requirements.
Key design issues included phasing of operations to enable the School to remain functional during construction and working in close proximity to the neighbouring Network Rail land along the main site boundary and the need to preserve views of the School’s Victorian gable ends required an innovative approach to the design of the railway facing
elevation. This generated the form for a trapezoidal glazed enclosure overlooking Wandsworth Common, and a combination of glass block, rain-screen cladding, and hand-made brickwork to break up the 60m long elevation.
The project provides the School with an outstanding facility which will serve the needs of current users and continue to attract new pupils to this successful School.
