• ArchitecturePLB appointed to VIVID framework

    Date posted: Monday 30 July 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have been appointed to VIVID Housing Association’s Architectural Services Framework which will deliver a range of new homes across Hampshire and Surrey. ArchitecturePLB have worked with VIVID, (previously First Wessex) on a number of projects and look forward to assisting them to meet their target of delivering 1,200 new dwellings a year until 2020.

    Previous projects with the housing association include; Monksbrook Estate, a phased regeneration programme which replaced an estate of 164 outmoded houses with 237 mixed tenure new homes, and Woodside Avenue, a development of 94 homes for Eastleigh Borough currently under construction.

  • Whitehill & Bordon Energy Centre Granted Planning

    Date posted: Tuesday 24 July 2018

    Planning permission has been granted for the first phase of the Whitehill & Bordon town centre, a new energy centre which will provide district heating to the whole of the Town Centre development. The energy centre sits within a wider masterplan which will include 2,400 new homes and a range of commercial, retail, community and leisure projects.

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  • ArchitecturePLB visit Kew Gardens

    Date posted: Wednesday 18 July 2018

    Last Thursday, the ArchitecturePLB team went to Kew Gardens for our annual summer study tour. Each year we venture out to a different location to explore some notable projects and see how our contemporaries have responded to design challenges. It is also an opportunity for the two studios to come together and talk about their own projects with colleagues.

    Armed with a map pointing out some of garden’s interesting architecture and sculpture, the team spent the morning taking in a range of projects including; the newly refurbished Temperate House (Donald Insall Associates), the Gallery of Botanical Art (Walters and Cohen), the Tree Top Walkway (Marks Barfield Architects) and the Beehive Pavilion (Wolfgang Buttress).

    We followed up the gardens with a boat trip back to Westminster, which gave us a new perspective of old and new developments along the Thames.

  • Rupert Cook invited to join the Equilibrium Network

    Date posted: Tuesday 17 July 2018

    Director, Rupert Cook has been invited to join the Equilibrium Network, an inter-disciplinary collaboration of built environment professionals and those working in client organisations. The Network, which is led by a steering group of successful women, aims to address the attrition rates of women professionals in the industry and promote gender diversity around the board room tables of organisations working across the built environment.

    Membership is extended to senior men and women who are creating the built environment and who are known to be influential across the professions and the industry at large. Members are asked to commit to being an accessible role model, promoting diversity both within their own organisations and through external networks. To advocate the business benefits of gender balance at senior level. And to mentor and support aspiring future female leaders to enable them to achieve their leadership potential.

    For more information please visit equilibrium-network.com

     

  • Bournemouth and Poole College development granted planning

    Date posted: Tuesday 10 July 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have been working with Bournemouth and Poole College to rationalise and modernise their Lansdowne Campus. Planning permission and listed building consent has recently been granted for a phased development which will vastly improve the student experience and efficiency of the campus. The design team, including landscape consultants UBU Design, have addressed the campus as a whole to create more coherent pedestrian friendly routes across campus and include a new landscaped plaza at the centre, providing the college with a car-free green amenity space for the first time.

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  • London studio mentor work experience student

    Date posted: Tuesday 10 July 2018

    Each year ArchitecturePLB welcome work experience students from local schools. Last week Architect Darren Wilson and Architectural Assistant Kwan Vo mentored Lottie in our London Studio.

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  • Christina Chrysafi wins Sustainability Prize

    Date posted: Monday 25 June 2018

    Now in its fifteenth year, the ArchitecturePLB Sustainability Prize is awarded to a final year University of Portsmouth student who exemplifies a sustainable ethos within the roots of their project. The 2018 degree show had a distinct social and economic sustainable agenda with projects tackling a wide range of contextual issues to improve the urban realm. In many projects, we observed the principles of passive sustainability being at the forefront of the design rather than being an afterthought added on.

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  • Private house design inspired by local flint

    Date posted: Friday 15 June 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have recently submitted a planning application for an exciting private house in the Hampshire countryside, sought through Paragraph 55 of the NPPF. One of the key criteria for achieving planning permission under this policy is for proposals to be of ‘exceptional architectural quality’. The design team have therefore worked to create a design which not only meets the needs of the family but will significantly enhance its setting. The landscape context has been the key driver for the design, which includes the use of locally ubiquitous flint.

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  • Promotions, Welcomes and Achievements

    Date posted: Wednesday 13 June 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have recently made a number of promotions across the practice. Paul Conway, has taken up the role of Associate Director, while Matthew Gibbs, and Alex Hutchinson, both based in Winchester, have been promoted to Associates. Matthew is currently heading up an exciting student accommodation scheme in central london, and Alex is working on a project in Southampton for repeat client, student housing provider, HOST.

    We are pleased to welcome back Michael de Nobrega, who has re-joined our London studio with promotion to Associate, after a six month stretch in the French Alps.

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  • HEDQF workshop at UEA

    Date posted: Friday 8 June 2018

    Director Rachel Shaw spent the day at the University of East Anglia yesterday, taking part in an event organised by the HEDQF which included an interactive workshop looking at developing a new movement strategy within the UEA campus.

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  • Recruiting Part I and Part II Architectural Assistants

    Date posted: Friday 25 May 2018

    We are looking for Part I and Part II Architectural Assistants to join our London and Winchester Studios. We have some exciting projects on the horizon and can offer a wide range of experience within a supportive environment. If you are interested in joining the team please see our job descriptions; Part I Architectural Assistant and Part II Architectural Assistant.

    We look forward to receiving your application by Friday 29th June. Please send the relevant information to recruitment@architectureplb.com.

     

     

  • ‘Town house’ style student housing scheme submitted for planning

    Date posted: Thursday 24 May 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have recently submitted a planning application for a ‘town house’ style, 134 bed student housing scheme in Colchester for repeat client Osborne.

    Located on the doorstep of the University of Essex, the site has a previous planning consent for housing, which has influenced ArchitecturePLB’s design solution. The scheme is made up of an unusual mix of 7 and 9 bed town houses, arranged around a landscaped green. Each unit will house a student ‘family’, with all rooms provided with ensuite shower facilities and access to a large communal kitchen and lounge on the ground floor.

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  • Quebec Park: 1759 cafe officially opened

    Date posted: Thursday 19 April 2018

    Last week, the new 1759 café at Quebec Park was officially opened by Damian Hinds, East Hampshire MP and Secretary of State for Education. The café is the public face of the Community Employment Hub at the heart of ArchitecturePLB’s Quebec Park development. The new hub will create 50 new jobs for the surrounding area and the cafe is being run as a social enterprise scheme to help train young people with learning difficulties in catering.

    Two former barrack buildings have been converted to create the new hub, these have been linked by a simple timber and glass-clad building. The cafe, which is named to mark the Battle of Quebec, opens out onto a landscaped community square.

     The Quebec Park development is the first major housing scheme at Whitehill and Bordon – Hampshire’s Green Town, which is set to be an exemplar sustainable community. Elsewhere in Bordon, ArchitecturePLB have also recently completed the design and planning application for the ‘Makers Market‘ which forms part of the new town centre.
  • Architects Mentor University of Portsmouth Students

    Date posted: Thursday 29 March 2018

    Architects Tom Hayes, Anna Osbourne, Andy Joyce and Jo DeSyllas have recently enjoyed mentoring two students from the University of Portsmouth through the RIBA Student Mentorship programme. Tom Ellis and Marcus Cooper told us how they found the experience:

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  • An egg-cellent practice day

    Date posted: Wednesday 28 March 2018

    Last week our London and Winchester studios came together for our Spring Practice Day. These happen twice a year and are an opportunity to share current projects and practice news. Project teams gave presentations on their schemes covering their design approach and any challenges overcome. A few of the projects highlighted were a new primary school and estate rationalisation project for Mary Hare School, a Health Centre funded by the development of housing, and a new Headquarters for Biosciences company Promega.

    We were well fed by the Winchester team throughout the day, and there was a vast array of home made cake and dessert on offer!

    As usual the day ended in a team building activity. This time we were tasked with building a boat propelled by a simple steam powered engine which could carry two eggs along a stretch of plastic guttering. Points were awarded for speed, creativity and egg-based puns.

  • Eastleigh College Shortlisted for RIBA South Award

    Date posted: Friday 23 March 2018

    ArchitecturePLB’s Eastleigh College re-development has been shortlisted for this year’s RIBA South Awards, which recognise architectural excellence across the region.

    Working within a constrained budget and a short timeframe of just two years the design team has created two adaptable, high impact teaching facilities for Eastleigh College, the Creative Skills Centre and Advanced Technology Centre. The buildings have been carefully planned to make best use of the space without losing the focus on inspiring and enjoyable spaces.

    The scheme will be assessed by a regional jury in April and winners announced will be announced at a reception on Thursday 17th May. The full shortlist can be found on the RIBA website.

  • Recruiting experienced Revit users

    Date posted: Wednesday 14 March 2018

    ArchitecturePLB is welcoming applications from Architects and Senior Architects with BIM and Revit experience to join our growing London studio.

    Please view our Architect and Senior Architect job descriptions for more information. Alternatively email recruitment@architectureplb.com to find out more.

    We look forward to receiving your applications by Friday 6th April.

  • See the Elephant

    Date posted: Thursday 8 March 2018

    ArchitecturePLB is supporting London Festival of Architecture’s Elephant Campaign, which aims to stamp out discriminatory behavior in the built environment and encourage industry leaders to commit to positive change. Please visit their website for information, pledge to acknowledge ‘the elephant in the room’ and take steps to challenge outdated attitudes, ensuring that the property industry is safe and welcoming for everyone. To show support, practices, and other companies working in the industry are sharing creative elephants on Twitter and Instagram.

  • LSE Library project inspires new Autex range

    Date posted: Thursday 1 March 2018

    ArchitecturePLB’s LSE Library redevelopment has inspired the new Cascade range by Autex. The design team approached Autex to help create an acoustic solution for an open plan study space. The product also needed to be an integral, visually interesting part of interiors scheme. Working with ArchitecturePLB, Autex developed an acoustic hanging screen to be suspended between the main space and the book stacks. A laser cut forest motive allows glimpses through to the spaces beyond. Always ready to respond the industry, Autex have since launched their new Cascade range for open plan spaces. Their new ceiling hung acoustic panels are available in a range of colours and laser cut patterns.

  • MTS Geography – latest phase of masterplan starts on site

    Date posted: Tuesday 13 February 2018

    The latest phase of ArchitecturePLB’s masterplan for Merchant Taylors’ School has started on site. Following the construction of a new Design Centre and the refurbishment of accommodation for the history department, this latest phase will provide a purpose-designed building for the geography department as well as a new health centre for the school. The new building has been sensitively designed to respect its historic context. With its simple L shaped form the building will complete the north-west corner of the schools main quad. The design reflects the architecture of the neighbouring 1930s buildings and will use reclaimed bricks from the previous, demolished structure.

  • Women’s Library at LSE

    Date posted: Friday 9 February 2018

    This week marked 100 years since the Representation of the People Act was passed, a first step towards universal suffrage in Britain. In 2013 we were privileged to help create a new home for the Women’s Library, and its suffrage collection which preserves the history of the campaign. The library holds the oldest and most extensive collection of women’s history in Europe, including over 212 designs for suffrage banners, badges and posters as well as personal papers, journals and pamphlets. In 2013 when LSE became the custodians of the Women’s Library, ArchitecturePLB were commissioned to create new reading room for the collection within their library building.

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  • St Paul’s Way Housing

    Date posted: Wednesday 7 February 2018

    ArchitecturePLB are underway with Stage 3 design development for a residential led mixed use scheme for LB Tower Hamlets, due to be submitted for full planning at the end of May. The scheme comprises a mix of 1,2 and 3 bed units, 45 in total, arranged in a nine storey apartment block with other uses at ground and first floor including potential sixth form provision and community use spaces. The scheme will provide a mixed tenure of social and market rented, with a minimum of 35% affordable.

    The site is a former doctor’s surgery on St Paul’s Way and the development forms part of the broader programme of regeneration for the neighbourhood. A feasibility study and viability assessment was completed last year, including a public exhibition to facilitate community engagement. The design optimises the capacity of a constrained site and with associated public realm improvements will serve as a new focal point for the local community.

  • Thoughts towards a future classroom

    Date posted: Thursday 1 February 2018

    Associate Emily Rissom visited the VS Furniture factory and showroom in Germany last week. During her visit she also took in the VS School Museum which charts the history of classroom design from the 1880s to the present day. ArchitecturePLB have always been at the forefront of design for education and we work with many schools to help them provide the best learning environments for their students. In 2015 we worked with Kensington Prep School who wanted to commission a new type of classroom to reflect their new learning ethos, designed to help equip their students for the future.

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  • Demelza House Space to Grow

    Date posted: Friday 26 January 2018

    Osborne’s ‘Space to Grow’ project for Demelza Hospice is now complete and making a significant difference to children, families, staff and volunteers at Demelza’s Eltham Hospice. ArchitecturePLB were pleased to work alongside Osborne to help them build a two-storey extension which will allow seriously ill children the space to grow, develop and live life to the fullest. Over 260 people from 33 companies gave their time for free to work on the project and Osborne have put together a film which highlights some of the people involved, including staff and volunteers at Demelza.

     

  • Kisharon School granted planning consent

    Date posted: Friday 19 January 2018

    Planning consent has recently been granted by The London Borough of Barnet for the new Kisharon School, to be developed in Hendon, North London. The existing, grade II listed building, currently HQ for the Kisharon charity, will be remodeled and extended to provide accommodation for up to 72 pupils aged 4-19 with a range of learning disabilities.

    On a very tight urban site with residential neighbours on all sides, our challenge was to maximize the potential of Kisharon’s existing asset. The listed building will be stripped of its later, poorer quality extensions and refurbished to accommodate the new school’s administrative functions and a series of specialist therapy rooms. A new extension to the rear will provide the main social and teaching spaces, with seven classrooms at ground and first floor and a multipurpose hall and hydrotherapy suite in the basement.

  • Cumberland Place student residence gets planning consent

    Date posted: Wednesday 17 January 2018

    ArchitecturePLB have recently received planning consent for a new student residence scheme in central Southampton. Having completed numerous projects in the area in recent years, ArchitecturePLB have developed a good relationship with Southampton City Council’s planning department. These include three other projects also facing onto the City’s listed Central Parks; landmark Mayflower Halls, Vincent Place student residences and a new sports facility for Southampton Solent University currently under construction.

    ArchitecturePLB were approached by student housing provider, and repeat client HOST to design a scheme for the prominent site. With our in-depth knowledge of the sector and existing understanding of the context ArchitecturePLB were able to maximise capacity for the site whilst creating a well-designed building which responds to the nearby listed park and has an active frontage onto Cumberland Place. The project is due to start on site in early 2018.

  • Welcomes and achievements

    Date posted: Tuesday 12 December 2017

    With new commissions and bid successes we are welcoming a number of new staff to the practice. The London studio has gained a new Senior Architect, Wyn Gilley. Wyn brings with him a depth of experience from a wide range of projects in both the residential and education sectors.

    Two new Part I architectural assistants have also joined us in the second half of the year, George Knipe in our London Studio and Fern Roberts in Winchester. We are currently in the process of recruiting for both architectural assistants and architects, and we hope to welcome these new team members in the new year.

    We are also celebrating the success of Andy Joyce and Anna Osbourne, who are the latest team member to attain fully qualified Architect status having completed their RIBA Part III this year.

  • Stapleton House wins award

    Date posted: Friday 8 December 2017

    At last night’s Student Accommodation Awards, Stapleton House was awarded ‘Private Halls of Residence of the Year [London]’. Operated by Unite Students and designed by ArchitecturePLB, the project has proved itself to be an exemplar building within the sector. ArchitecturePLB were able to balance the commercial need to maximise the number of rooms with the needs of end users and the wider community. The design team worked to provide ‘a home away from home’, offering students a safe and secure environment in which to flourish both socially and academically as well create a building that visually and physically enhances the streetscape.

  • We are recruiting for an architect

    Date posted: Tuesday 28 November 2017

    ArchitecturePLB have an opportunity for an architect in our London office. If you have three years post qualification experience we can offer you new design opportunities working on exciting projects in a friendly and collaborative environment.

    Please view our job description for more information or email recruitment@architectureplb.com. We look forward to receiving your application by Friday 8th December.

  • Support SPUD Youth to realise Handlebar Cafe

    Date posted: Thursday 23 November 2017

    SPUD Youth, an award winning charity, that brings people together, from all walks of life to collaborate on educational, art and architectural projects need your help to realise the vision of a group of Winchester teenagers. These young people, interested in architecture and place-making, developed designs for a new cycle cafe for Winchester supported by ArchitecturePLB and other built environment professionals. After almost 3 years of research, model-making, planning meetings, presentations and consultation, they secured planning permission for the café and are now in the final stages of fundraising. The Charity have raised over £275,000 worth of funding and in-kind support and are having a last push to raise the final £75,000. You can support the charity this week by purchasing a Handlebar Café T-shirt. To find out more about the project and how you can support it, please visit their website.  

  • Whitehill & Bordon Town Centre

    Date posted: Thursday 23 November 2017

    Former ‘garrison town’ Whitehill & Bordon in Hampshire is currently undergoing a major transformation into a £1bn ‘green town’, with multiple partners collaborating to realise the 100-hectare masterplan.

    Having recently completed one of the first new residential schemes at Quebec Park for Radian Homes, ArchitecturePLB were appointed by the Whitehill & Bordon Regeneration Company as part of the design team for another key component of the green town; the new town centre

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  • LSE Library redevelopment, latest phase completed

    Date posted: Monday 20 November 2017

    Since 2012 ArchitecturePLB have been working with the London School of Economics and Political Science to carry out a £12m rolling programme of improvements throughout their Library building. The latest phase, at the lower ground floor was completed before the new term in September and is already proving popular with students.

    The scheme is part of a campus wide project to enhance student experience by offering a greater variety of study spaces. The Lower Ground Floor has been remodeled to create welcoming and flexible work space. The design team worked to ‘bring the outside in’, colours and materials were chosen to bring warmth and promote well-being. Laser cut acoustic panels separate the book stacks from the main study space and flexible modular seating allows for more informal working.

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  • Autumn Practice Day 2017

    Date posted: Friday 3 November 2017

    Twice a year the teams from London and Winchester get together in one of our offices to share current and upcoming projects and to get an update on practice and industry news. This October it was the turn of our London studio to host and staff provided a magnificent feast of home cooked food for lunch. As usual we ended the day with a team building activity. Director Mike Skiton set a series of entertaining tasks to get us thinking about the importance of verbal communication. Our first exercise was to ascertain which word had been pinned to our backs through a series of ‘animal, vegetable, mineral’ yes/no questions. This done, we were able to find our word counterpart, fish met chips, batman met robin etc. Placed back to back in pairs we then had the task of recreating a photograph on paper with one person describing what they saw and the other drawing. Finally, we were allowed to test our visual drawing skills with a two-minute caricature of our partners which caused much amusement all round!

  • Recruiting Part II Architectural Assistants

    Date posted: Wednesday 1 November 2017

    Due to an expanding project portfolio we are looking to recruit talented and experienced RIBA Part II Architectural Assistants to join our London and Winchester teams to assist in the design and delivery of an exciting range of projects.

    Please see our job description for more details. Closing date Friday 24th November.

  • Bloom accredited supplier

    Date posted: Monday 30 October 2017

    We are now an accredited supplier to Bloom, which makes it easier for our clients to appoint us, especially within the public sector. Bloom deliver the Nepro neutral vendor solution, a procurement process that’s fully OJEU compliant and brings together a community of buyers and suppliers to help the public sector buy professional services more efficiently. For more information please visit Bloom’s website.

  • Demelza Children’s Hospice

    Date posted: Thursday 12 October 2017

    ArchitecturePLB, were recently invited by Osborne Construction to assist in a charity project for Demelza Children’s Hospice in Eltham, London. As part of their 50th Anniversary celebrations Osborne will be creating a much needed new extension for the hospice. A team of consultants, contractors and suppliers including ArchitecturePLB are providing their time, labour and materials freely to support the project. ArchitecturePLB have drawn up proposals which will increase the floor space and reconfigure a number of areas internally to create much needed family and staff spaces and a fresh new entrance and reception area. Having received planning permission this week, the project will be constructed as a ‘Big Build’ in just 2-3 weeks.

  • HEDQF members visit the University of Kent

    Date posted: Tuesday 19 September 2017

    As a founder member of the Higher Education Design Quality Forum, ArchitecturePLB works to promote good design in the sector. This includes developing and sharing best practice knowledge through thought leadership events and reference visits to university buildings of particular interest in the UK and overseas.

    Associates Emily Rissom and Andrew Fifield visited the University of Kent Canterbury Campus last week to see how the 1960s campus is being updated to accommodate the university’s plans for future growth and investment. In line with other universities across the UK new synergies and efficiencies of collocating departments are being explored and new student destinations being created.

    The visit was an opportunity for HEDQF members including built environment professionals and university clients to come together to discuss good quality design. For more information on the work of the HEDQF please visit their website.

  • Design centre featured in Architecture Today supplement

    Date posted: Tuesday 12 September 2017

    Merchant Taylors’ School Design Centre has been featured in the latest edition of Design magazine, a supplement of Architecture Today, showcasing projects where bricks have been used to enhance design. The feature highlights ArchitecturePLB’s sensitive brick selection and detailing which “anchor the new design centre to the historic campus” ensuring that it sits comfortably alongside adjacent Grade II listed 1930s school buildings. The project was awarded a Brick Awards commendation in 2016.

    The full feature can be found here (pages 6-13)

  • Open House London

    Date posted: Friday 1 September 2017

    Several London schemes by ArchitecturePLB will be opened to the public as part of Open House London, taking place on 16th-17th September.

    Open House London is a city-wide celebration of the buildings, places, and neighbourhoods where we live, work and play. For one weekend in September hundreds of great buildings of all types and periods open their doors to all, completely for free. A quarter of a million people are expected to attend.

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  • £28m Solent University Sports Building Gets Go Ahead

    Date posted: Friday 11 August 2017

    ArchitecturePLB’s new sports building for Solent University’s city centre campus has received planning permission from Southampton City Council. 

    Work on the £28 million scheme will begin on site this month, and marks the latest stage of ArchitecturePLB’s estate development plan, which will regenerate the main East Park Terrace campus over a twenty-year period.

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  • We are recruiting for a Senior Architect

    Date posted: Thursday 10 August 2017

    ArchitecturePLB have an opportunity in our London office for a senior architect with at least five years post qualification experience designing and delivering significant projects. We can provide exciting design opportunities working on a range of projects in a friendly and collaborative environment.

    Please view our job description for more information.

    We look forward to receiving your application by the 8 September.

     

  • City, University of London Tait refurbishment completes

    Date posted: Tuesday 1 August 2017

    ArchitecturePLB’s refurbishment of the first floor of City, University of London’s Tait building has reached completion. Breathing new life in to the 1960’s building located on Northampton Square, the primary objective was to create a new communal destination for students and staff. The floor plate was opened up to create a hub at the buildings heart, as well as improve circulation around the building. A new fully glazed ‘learning link’ runs along the southside of the courtyard, creating a new connection with the new main entrance on Goswell Road. The learning link feeds into study spaces, multi faith spaces, the Student Union and an open plan cafe hub.

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  • Summer Practice Day 2017

    Date posted: Thursday 27 July 2017

    Our annual Summer Practice Day this year saw ArchitecturePLB’s two offices take in a research trip to Bournemouth. The day included a guided tour of Arts University Bournemouth, led by Simon Beeson, leader of the Architecture course. He talked us through the ongoing campus expansion, guiding us through the latest developments, including the new Drawing Studio by AUB alumnus, Sir Peter Cook. As always, the day was a refreshing opportunity for the practice’s studios to share ideas and find inspiration for our ongoing portfolio of projects.

  • University of Portsmouth Sustainability Prize

    Date posted: Wednesday 19 July 2017

    Continuing our long-term relationship with University of Portsmouth’s School of Architecture, we are delighted to announce that student Henry Edwards has won the 2017 ArchitecturePLB Sustainability Prize. The award for final year RIBA Part 2, post-graduates was started by the University in association with ArchitecturePLB in 2003. During that period, we have seen sustainability units within the school come and go, ambitious Government standards introduced and then be removed. However, with the recent landmark Paris Climate Agreement, we have a global treaty which recognises the need for action, even if it falls short of binding countries to actual reductions.

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  • University of Portsmouth Masterplan completed

    Date posted: Friday 14 July 2017

    ArchitecturePLB’s masterplan for the University of Portsmouth has been completed. Launched at a breakfast event in the city last week, the proposals were developed in support of the University’s strategic vision and will be rolled out over a 15-20 year period with a planned expenditure of circa £400m.

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  • Comparing Heart Spaces

    Date posted: Wednesday 12 July 2017

    Rachel Shaw is speaking at an Associated Construction Network event on Thursday 20 July, entitled ‘Comparing Heart Spaces in student accommodation, retirement homes & care homes’. In healthcare, residential and education schemes, the heart or hub of a building can be an inspiring space; the main ‘place for people’. However keeping it adaptable and flexible to allow for future changes and ensuring that the space doesn’t become under utilised or lifeless can be a challenge…

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  • Sustainable Council Housing scheme on site

    Date posted: Tuesday 13 June 2017

    Comprising 94 homes for Eastleigh Borough Council, Woodside Avenue achieves a new standard for environmentally sustainable development and design quality in the town. The sustainability measures were designed in to the scheme at the outset with four dwellings achieving PassivHaus certification and the overall project designed to the meet Excellent under the new BREEAM Communities Standard.

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  • Report – Massive Passiv: Applying Passivhaus to Larger Scale Developments

    Date posted: Friday 2 June 2017

    We recently hosted our Green Sky Thinking event ‘Massive Passiv: Applying Passivhaus to larger scale developments’.

    Using new build student accommodation as an example, a panel of speakers explored how Passivhaus can raise the bar in terms of building design and construction quality, as well as the benefits to owners and users over the building’s lifespan.

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  • Driving efficiency through estate rationalisation – an HEDQF workshop

    Date posted: Sunday 21 May 2017

    The Higher Education Design Quality Forum (HEDQF) has published its latest briefing paper entitled ‘Driving Efficiency Through Estate Rationalisation’. The paper follows a workshop staged by HEDQF for the Scottish Association of University Directors of Estates members at the Glasgow School of Art, at their annual conference.

    The group, which included ArchitecturePLB director Rupert Cook, as well as the estates teams from a number of Scottish universities, focussed on the challenges they face in delivering and maintaining quality HE facilities, under the constraints of efficiency and rationalisation.

    The workshop included presentations and group discussions facilitated by members of the HEDQF – of which ArchitecturePLB are a founder member – and established 10 dilemmas they face, on the themes of Place, People and Process, and proposed a series of Top Tip solutions for each. The paper can be viewed here.

  • Phase 1 of exemplar sustainable community completes

    Date posted: Friday 5 May 2017

    Phase 1 of Quebec Park, the first major housing development at Whitehill and Bordon – Hampshire’s Green Town, which is set to be an exemplar sustainable community – has completed. It is anticipated that the first phase will be the standard bearer for the remainder of the masterplan, so significant importance has been placed on getting the scheme right in terms of sustainable design, architectural design and its marketability to the general public.

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  • Green Sky Thinking with Overbury at LSE LIFE

    Date posted: Thursday 27 April 2017

    ArchitecturePLB Associate Emily Rissom will be participating in a discussion organised by Overbury as part of next month’s Green Sky Thinking.

    In collaboration with the LSE, Overbury’s Head of Environmental and Sustainability, Dr Joe Croft, will chair the discussion which is entitled “SKA for Higher Education: exploring the new benchmark for sustainable fit outs”. It will be held in LSE LIFE, the new academic, personal and professional development centre housed within LSE Library, which is the latest in a programme of works delivered by Overbury and ArchitecturePLB for the School. The project was completed using SKA rating to create a sustainable working environment for staff and students. Opportunities for sustainability within the higher education sector’s property portfolio will be discussed and the challenges of working across multi-use spaces explored.

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  • Massive Passiv: Applying the Passivhaus principles

    Date posted: Tuesday 11 April 2017

    We are very pleased to be have been selected to take in part in Green Sky Thinking 2017. Entitled ‘Massive Passiv: Applying the Passivhaus principles to larger scale developments’, our event will take place on Thursday 18 May from 4pm – 6pm.

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  • Spring Practice Day 2017

    Date posted: Friday 24 March 2017

    This year’s Spring practice day brought together the two ArchitecturePLB offices at our Winchester studio. These occasions allow the whole practice to update each other on new and recent projects, research and initiatives, including presentations on future business and marketing strategies. The day ended with a keenly contested team building activity that required groups to design and build an airship on a limited budget using balloons and basic craft materials, all of which were set to a budget. Points were awarded for engineering, cost control, team skills and design flair!

  • City University Computer Sciences

    Date posted: Tuesday 14 March 2017

    ArchitecturePLB’s upgrade works to the Department of Computer Science at City University London have been completed. The latest result of our framework appointment with the University, the department has been reconfigured to provide students and staff with a defined home and clear identity for the department and encourage collaboration and interaction between academic staff and students.

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  • Sutton High School Masterplan

    Date posted: Wednesday 8 March 2017

    Selected by the Girls’ Day School Trust from its architectural framework, we are currently working with Sutton High School on two concurrent projects. The first is for the renovation and refurbishment of the school’s assembly hall to bring the original 1950’s building up to current standards, including new retractible seating, AV systems and other ancillary facilities.

    Alongside this initial project, which is to be delivered imminently, we are also working with the school and Trust to develop a masterplan for the whole site, including an entirely new Junior School for Girls aged 3-11 and particular new facilities for the Senior School. These will include a new Reception, specialist facilities for Music, Drama and IT, a remodelled library and expanded dining and changing facilities. Underpinning the whole will be a comprehensive site masterplan providing a Synthetic Turf Pitch, hard-surfaced Multi Use Games Area and new amenity landscaping.

  • Stapleton House scheme completes

    Date posted: Tuesday 28 February 2017

    ArchitecturePLB has completed a 10-storey, £40m student accommodation scheme in North London. Sitting opposite the London Metropolitan University campus on Holloway Road, Stapleton House provides 862 study bedrooms for the Unite Group. With the provision of community space and commercial units for local businesses on the ground floor, it will help continue the regeneration of the local area.

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  • Eastleigh College redevelopment

    Date posted: Thursday 23 February 2017

    The first phase of our masterplan and redevelopment of Eastleigh College in Hampshire has completed. A new Creative Skills Centre on Chestnut Avenue campus replaces facilities which were formerly located at Desborough Road, a location which was released for housing to fund the College development. Following a site-wide options appraisal, ArchitecturePLB conceived a revised and more ambitious masterplan, which included the relocation of phase two and a wide reaching rationalisation of the College’s secondary space uses.

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  • Double RICS Awards shortlisting

    Date posted: Tuesday 21 February 2017

    Two of our recently completed projects have been shortlisted in the 2017 Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) London Awards.

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  • Heron Hall Academy completes

    Date posted: Friday 17 February 2017

    Heron Hall Academy in Enfield, North London, has reached completion. The project entailed the refurbishment and remodelling of a redundant, partly derelict 1930’s Grade II listed technical college for use as a new secondary Free School.

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  • Gillotts School campus redevelopment

    Date posted: Tuesday 14 February 2017

    Building on our experience of land sale and ‘enabling’ development at The Broxbourne School in Hertfordshire, ArchitecturePLB was recently selected, through an open and highly-competitive OJEU process, to assist Gillotts School in Henley in delivering a comprehensive re-development of their campus.

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  • Capital Idea for New London Quarterly

    Date posted: Thursday 9 February 2017

    ArchitecturePLB directors Rachel Shaw and Rupert Cook recently had their ‘Capital Idea!’ published in New London Quarterly. Their proposal explored the potential for high rise Universities as a means of releasing swathes of land for other developments.

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  • Paul Phasey Promoted to Associate

    Date posted: Wednesday 8 February 2017

    ArchitecturePLB is pleased to announce the promotion of Paul Phasey from Senior Architect to Associate. Since joining ArchitecturePLB in 2004, Paul has developed an expertise in sustainable design and is an accredited Passivhaus Designer.

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  • New £26m building for The Broxbourne School

    Date posted: Friday 3 February 2017

    ArchitecturePLB has been working with The Broxbourne School (TBS), and Cornerstone as ‘broker’, on the comprehensive redevelopment of their site in Hertfordshire. This will provide a brand new £26m school building and new external amenity and sports facilities which will be entirely funded by a residential development on surplus school land.

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  • Hythe Appointment

    Date posted: Thursday 2 February 2017

    ArchitecturePLB have been appointed by NHS Property Services to deliver a new hospital building on the site of Hythe Hospital in Southampton.

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  • Meeting London’s school needs

    Date posted: Wednesday 1 February 2017

    For the duration of February we will be showcasing a range of projects for which a successful estates rationalisation strategy has been instrumental in realising ambitious capital projects. Combined with our cross-sector experience, our expertise in optimising organisations’ built assets has allowed us to deliver many projects, from residential through to education and health sectors, for clients whose needs could not be met without our creative vision for their overall estate. 

    In keeping with this theme, ArchitecturePLB director, Rachel Shaw, will be part of a panel of speakers at a half day conference on ‘Meeting London’s school needs’ at New London Architecture next Wednesday 8 February.

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  • BD Architect of the Year nomination

    Date posted: Wednesday 25 January 2017

    We are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted for the BD Architect of the Year Awards, in the Education Architect of the Year (nursery to 6th form) category.

    Organised by Building Design, these awards are distinguished from other architectural awards by virtue of honouring overall achievement within a particular sector.

    The winners will be announced during the Ecobuild exhibition at the Excel Centre in London on 8 March.

  • City University lecture theatre opens

    Date posted: Friday 20 January 2017

    Our 240-seat lecture theatre scheme for City University London has completed. Originally designed and built in the 1970’s, the space has taken on a number of uses over the years including a theatre and graduate centre. Located in the University Building on the Northampton Square campus, our design adopts a ‘Harvard’ model layout, which has proven successful for student interaction and allows everyone to be visible to each other. Envisaged as a fine piece of furniture within the existing brutalist building, a new Ash timber lining forms the enclosure of the main space.

  • SKA Offices Gold rating for LSE LIFE

    Date posted: Wednesday 18 January 2017

    LSE LIFE has achieved a SKA Gold rating – the highest accolade for sustainable fit-outs. Operated by RICS, SKA is an environmental assessment method, benchmark and standard for fit-outs, and it scores environmental good practice irrespective of the base building.

    The LSE LIFE scheme is the latest in a programme of works by ArchitecturePLB for LSE, and provides a new academic, personal and professional development centre housed within the school’s library.

    You can read more on our transformation of the space here.

    Photography © Overbury 2016.

  • John Browning (1940 – 2016)

    Date posted: Tuesday 13 December 2016

    We are saddened to learn that John Browning, one of the founding partners of the practice, passed away recently. John led and was involved in a range of projects, many of which achieved national recognition including RIBA and Civic Trust awards, as well as accolades at local level through amenity groups such as the Winchester Trust.

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  • Part 3 success rate continues

    Date posted: Friday 9 December 2016

    Tom Hayes and Callum Lewis-Laverty are the latest members of the ArchitecturePLB team to successfully attain fully qualified architect status. Their achievement maintains our 100% track record for staff qualifying as architects, reflecting the practice’s commitment to fully supporting staff in their professional development. Congratulations Callum and Tom!

  • Sir John Cass School of Art completed

    Date posted: Wednesday 7 December 2016

    The first phase of our renewal of The Sir John Cass School of Art, Architecture and Design in Aldgate, London is complete.

    The design intentionally builds on the the architectural language developed at other spaces recently refurbished for the faculty by ArchitecturePLB, whilst at the same time working with and enhancing the positive characteristics of this specific building.

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  • LSBU Learning and Creative Design Centre

    Date posted: Friday 25 November 2016

    We were recently shortlisted in the design competition for a new Learning and Creative Design Centre for London South Bank University. Our proposals were developed from two clear starting points. Firstly, the importance of the public realm in expressing the civic role of the London South Bank University within the city. Secondly, the further evolution of a theme that we have previously explored; the creation of a richly varied learning landscape, which places student experience at its heart.

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  • Promega Corporation UK Headquarters

    Date posted: Thursday 24 November 2016

    ArchitecturePLB are working with Promega Corporation to design a new, distinctive and sustainable company headquarters in the south of England. Promega Corporation is a global leader in providing innovative solutions and technical support to life scientists, with subsidiaries in 16 countries and employing over 1,400 people globally. ArchitecturePLB’s proposals place a strong emphasis on sustainability and environmental impact, with a design for a high tech office building that is sympathetic to it’s landscaped surroundings. The new HQ will include a modern training and applications laboratory, flexible social and training spaces, a conference facility, high quality offices and a gym and wellness area.

  • Transforming a central London library in to a contemporary student hub

    Date posted: Wednesday 23 November 2016

    LSE LIFE is a new academic, personal and professional development centre housed within LSE Library, and is the latest in a programme of works delivered by ArchitecturePLB for the School. We were tasked with developing a design that provided a mix of social, quiet and collaborative areas, which reflect new ways of learning and approaches to education.

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  • Brick Awards recognition for MTS Design Centre

    Date posted: Friday 11 November 2016

    Merchant Taylors’ School Design Centre was awarded a Judge’s Commendation in the Best Education Project category at last night’s Brick Awards. Recognising excellence in brick and brickwork, the annual Brick Awards is one of the longest, most well established and most widely respected design and construction awards in the UK. Brick selection and detailing were important in ensuring that the new Design Centre at Merchant Taylors’ sits comfortably alongside the adjacent Grade II listed, 1930’s school buildings.

     

  • Research: Future Living Spaces

    Date posted: Thursday 10 November 2016

    At ArchitecturePLB we have been working with several clients to explore solutions that provide living spaces more attuned to the specific needs of those trying to get on the housing ladder, and those stepping down from larger dwelling and looking for something more manageable.

    An important personal space for all of us is undoubtedly our home, a place to make our own in a wider neighbourhood of friends and family. But housing is in short supply, with an estimated 300,000 new homes required each year – far outstripping the supply, or indeed the land available to build them.

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  • Well Built: Designing for Health and Wellbeing in Architecture

    Date posted: Thursday 3 November 2016

    ArchitecturePLB’s recently completed ‘agile classrooms’ for Kensington Preparatory School feature in a new exhibition, entitled ‘Well Built: Designing for Health and Wellbeing in Architecture’.

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  • Autumn Practice Day

    Date posted: Wednesday 2 November 2016

    This October ArchitecturePLB’s Winchester team came to London for our Autumn Practice Day. This twice yearly event is a chance for the whole practice to catch up, hear about recent projects and other practice wide initiatives. For many it was also an opportunity to see our new London at 50 Southwark Street. The London team took on the catering with everyone bringing along something special to share. To finish off the day, Senior Architects, Thomas and Michael organised a team building challenge, which required three teams to collaborate to create a ‘roller coaster run’ for a ping pong ball using recycled materials.

  • Top 60 Development Awards Shortlist

    Date posted: Thursday 6 October 2016

    Having won a Planning and Placemaking Award earlier this year, our phased regeneration scheme Monksbrook Estate has been shortlisted for Inside Housing’s Top 60 Development Awards. The project, which was carefully masterplanned to increase housing density on the site whilst providing private gardens, a large central park and plenty of parking, has been shortlisted for ‘Best Designed Development of the Year’. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in London on 14 October.

  • Handlebar Cafe in for planning

    Date posted: Friday 2 September 2016

    An innovative new cafe, designed by local young people and supported by ArchitecturePLB, has been submitted for planning. Located on the site of a disused railway on the outskirts of Winchester, and just within the South Downs National Park, the Handlebar Cafe has been developed by SPUD Youth, an award winning programme run for young people aged 11 and upwards who are interested in architecture, urban design and public art.

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  • ArchitecturePLB hosts Women In Property

    Date posted: Wednesday 31 August 2016

    ArchitecturePLB is hosting a Women In Property drinks reception to mark the end of summer on Wednesday 14th September 2016 from 6pm–8.30pm. The event takes place at our Winchester office, hopefully enjoying some late summer sunshine on our outdoor terrace. The evening will include networking with drinks and canapés, together with two short presentations from ArchitecturePLB and fellow sponsor, Remarkable Content, along with some surprise entertainment!

    To book a ticket email rebecca.humble@wyg.com for further details.

     

  • Solent University Masterplan

    Date posted: Thursday 25 August 2016

    ArchitecturePLB have completed a new masterplan for Solent University’s East Park Terrace Campus. The proposals will inform the development of the site over the next twenty years, and will include the delivery of two new sports buildings, a student hub and library and improvements to the public realm.

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  • We have moved!

    Date posted: Wednesday 17 August 2016

    ArchitecturePLB has re-located its London studio in to a new space in Southwark.

    We are now based at 50 Southwark Street, SE1 1UN – a short walk from London Bridge mainline and Borough and Southwark underground stations.

    We look forward to welcoming you to our new studio soon.

  • Design Centre shortlisted for Brick Award

    Date posted: Thursday 4 August 2016

    Merchant Taylors’ School Design Centre has been shortlisted in the Best Education Project category in this years Brick Awards. The Brick Awards is one of the most well established and widely respected design and construction awards in the UK, recognising excellence in brick and brickwork. Each year, hundreds of entries are submitted across a range of categories.
    Brick selection and detailing were important in ensuring that the new Design Centre at Merchant Taylors’ sits comfortably alongside the adjacent Grade II listed, 1930’s school buildings. Winners will be announced on 10 November in a ceremony at Hilton Park Lane, London.

  • Summer Practice Day 2016

    Date posted: Wednesday 20 July 2016

    For ArchitecturePLB’s Summer Practice Day our London and Winchester studios came together for a research trip to Oxford. We spent the day exploring the city’s architectural landmarks, old and new. After a hard day of architectural sightseeing, some of the team took to the river to try their hand at punting, some more successfully than others! The day was a great opportunity for team members from different studios to catch up and gather new ideas to feed into current projects.

  • Merchant Taylor’s School Masterplan

    Date posted: Wednesday 6 July 2016

    The latest phase of ArchitecturePLB’s masterplan for Merchant Taylor’s School in Northwood, Middlesex has completed. The refurbishment of the History department follows in the footsteps of the Design Centre, which opened in September 2015. Having now delivered the first three phases of construction, the masterplan remains a living document, providing a framework for development while adjusting to meet the school’s changing needs and priorities.

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  • Rupert Cook contributes to Future Campus book

    Date posted: Tuesday 5 July 2016

    Rupert Cook has contributed to Future Campus, a new RIBA publication which aims to help architects, design teams and university clients in their pursuit of practical and innovative solutions for the creation of enabling higher education learning environments. Written in collaboration with Professor Philip Ogden of Queen Mary University, Rupert explores the key factors that lie behind the masterplanning process and how it fits within wider institutional governance. The book, edited by Ian Taylor of Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and which launches at HEDQF on 12 July, can be purchased via the RIBA Bookshop.

  • Monksbrook Estate wins Planning Award

    Date posted: Wednesday 29 June 2016

    Monksbrook Estate in Eastleigh has won the ‘Planning for Affordable Housing’ award at the Planning and Placemaking Awards 2016.The awards recognise and celebrate outstanding achievement in planning work by all the key players in the planning system, with the winners chosen by expert panels of 36 senior figures from across the sector. ArchitecturePLB’s project saw 164 properties replaced with 237 mixed-tenure homes, increasing site density by 45 per cent while reconfiguring the estate. Judges praised the “well rounded scheme”, which involved adding private gardens, redesigning the public realm and removing two “rat-run” roads.

  • Nick Mirchandani to speak at HCC event

    Date posted: Friday 24 June 2016

    Nick Mirchandani is speaking at SPACES, a study day to be hosted by Hampshire County Council in Winchester next week. The theme of the day will be discussing how to successfully deliver educational buildings within a landscape of challenging programmes and budgets, without compromising on quality, whole life or the environment, and aims to stimulate debate, share experiences and explore the lessons that can be taken away by architects, school estates managers and the wider public/private sector.

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  • Andrew Fifield speaks at NLA event

    Date posted: Thursday 9 June 2016

    Associate Andrew Fifield was recently invited to speak at “Universities: Closed estates or integrated campuses?” a half day conference hosted by New London Architecture, which looked at the changing nature of London’s university estates.

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  • Nick Mirchandani to chair schools panel

    Date posted: Thursday 2 June 2016

    Nick Mirchandani will be chairing a panel discussion on 20 June at The Building Centre, entitled Building Healthy Communities: Schools and Education. Part of the London Festival of Architecture, and organised by the Museum of Architecture with the Building Centre, it is one of a series of events focusing on how creative thinking and innovative design within particular building typologies are contributing to collective health and wellbeing in communities. The speakers will look at how schools can and should be more than just practical, functional buildings. For further details, including how to get tickets, click here.

  • Sutton High School

    Date posted: Friday 20 May 2016

    ArchitecturePLB has been appointed by the Girls’ Day School Trust to carry out two projects for Sutton High School. The appointment continues our ongoing relationship with the GDST, with past projects including a new interactive ‘Explore Floor’ for Kensington Prep School, completed in early 2016. The first project for Sutton High School will see the original school hall refurbished with improved access and ancillary facilities, creating a new flexible, modern performance space. The second stage involves a site wide review of the existing school facilities, culminating in a masterplan for its future development.

  • Cromwell Road featured in Inform, Architecture Today

    Date posted: Friday 13 May 2016

    Cromwell Road, a sensitively designed neighborhood of nine houses in Stanmore, Winchester, is featured in the Spring issue of Architecture Today’s ‘Inform’ supplement. The edition covers a range of innovative housing solutions from London and the South East. The scheme, for client Radian Group, is positioned on a narrow former allotment site and is designed to create contemporary homes whilst minimising overlooking of neighbouring properties. The full article can be viewed here (page 38).

  • Integrating ICT whitepaper launched

    Date posted: Thursday 5 May 2016

    ArchitecturePLB Director Nick Mirchandani, last week addressed the Education Construction Network at the launch of a whitepaper entitled ‘Integrating ICT into School and College Design’. The paper is a collaboration between ArchitecturePLB, Moxton Education (educationalists) and Circle IT (ICT consultants). The team are all specialists within the education sector who have collaborated previously under the BSF programme, in which IT was to be a crucial component in the ‘transformation’ of education outcomes. Education providers now face the challenge of delivering future proofed IT solutions with only limited opportunities for early dialogue.

  • Reading UK 2050

    Date posted: Tuesday 3 May 2016

    Rupert Cook has been invited to join the Reading UK 2050 initiative, a group of design professionals brought together by Barton Willmore to create a Vision of how Reading could look in 2050.

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  • Spring Practice Day 2016

    Date posted: Friday 29 April 2016

    The ArchitecturePLB team recently gathered in our Winchester Office for our Spring Practice Day, an opportunity for everyone to get together and share project knowledge. Following a series of presentations from project architects, the day was rounded off with a Lego-based team building activity. The task required teams of ‘builders’ to recreate a Lego model using only information relayed from ‘the client’ through the ‘architect’. It was an inspiring exercise, and had everyone from architectural assistants to directors racing to complete their model. Points were awarded for accuracy, but also creativity!

  • Green light for Technology Block

    Date posted: Friday 22 April 2016

    Plans for a new Advanced Technology Block for Eastleigh College have been given the green light, receiving unanimous planning approval from Eastleigh Borough Council. The project is the second phase of new development designed by ArchitecturePLB (phase 1, the Arts and Hair & Beauty building is currently on site). The buildings form part of a college wide improvement strategy which puts technology at the heart of the college and creates a single campus to enhance the student experience. The new building will house specialist teaching of engineering and IT subjects while encouraging collaborative working.

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  • Moorside Road Granted Planning

    Date posted: Friday 18 March 2016

    Construction of ArchitecturePLB’s 237 bed student accommodation scheme in Winnall, Winchester, commenced on 21 March.The project, due to open in September 2017, provides much needed accommodation for students at University of Southampton’s Winchester School of Art, a campus located in the heart of the city which includes a number of buildings also designed by APLB. Planning permission for the site, located on the edge of a SSSI, was won on appeal in July 2015. The planning inspector highlighting that “….the scheme represents good design which would make a positive contribution to the street scene…”

  • Monksbrook Estate shortlisted for RICS Award

    Date posted: Tuesday 15 March 2016

    Phased housing re-development Monksbrook Estate has been shortlisted for the RICS Awards 2016, South East. The project replaces 164 outmoded houses with 237 new homes for First Wessex Housing Association. Phase one was completed in 2014 with phase 2 set to complete in 2016. The Award ceremony will take place in Brighton this May.

  • Success for MTS Design Centre

    Date posted: Tuesday 15 March 2016

    The new Design Centre for Merchant Taylors’ School has been selected as a regional finalist in this year’s LABC Building Excellence Awards. The Award aims to celebrate ‘outstanding craftsmanship, technical innovation, sustainability and high performance’. The project, which completed in August 2015, has also been featured in Architecture Today’s winter edition of Inform, which highlights education projects from across the UK. The feature can be viewed here from page 22.