A joyful user experience
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios for Bedales School
Contract value: Confidential
GIA: 1,440m²
FCBS was able to apply lessons from its Manchester School of Art to deliver design quality in a smaller building despite a restricted budget. The students were involved throughout, from inception and selection of the architect to space planning and details, resulting in a very tailored and functional building.
Sensitive siting, form and materials set up a dialogue with adjacent older buildings on this complex historic site and strike relationships with the surrounding landscape.
The honesty of the building’s material expression allows users to see how it was put together, which chimes with the client’s idea of an educational ‘instrument’ educating in every sense.
Existing single-storey studios have been reinvented over two storeys, with generous overhangs to create external spaces for students, a conscious move to optimise area and make good use of a tight budget. Playful use of light through the layering of lattice screens and external covered areas offers a joyful user experience. It’s intelligently commissioned and a great design response.
Regional Client of the Year
Regional Sustainability Award
Regional Project Architect of the Year – Tom Jarman
See the other winners of the RIBA Regional Awards 2017 - South