Flinders Hall
Date 2021
Location Lincoln
Value £2,050,000
Photographer Francesco Russo
Quantity Surveyor: Thornton Firkin
Structural Engineer: Alan Wood & Partners
Mechanical & Electrical: Viridis
Contractor: Hobson & Porter
A new accommodation block was built in response to increasing student numbers at the Showground Campus of Bishop Burton College. This provides thirty-nine en-suite student bedrooms, including three accessible rooms and social spaces, in a building that has been designed to have low operational energy use.
The new accommodation block is surrounded by a range of building types with varied uses. The detail and architectural language utilise a simple linear pitched roof form with a restrained palette of robust materials, including architectural masonry, western red cedar and zinc. The architectural language helps unify the design within a vast array of building forms and a variety of materials that are evident within the campus.
The building is orientated north-south with a central corridor that serves the bedrooms. The orientation allows the accommodation to enjoy the morning and evening daylight while minimising overheating. The social space is positioned in a separate wing with a south-facing orientation to maximise solar gain and views over the open countryside.
This project embodies sustainable materials and construction methodologies where possible to create a development that has a minimal environmental impact on its immediate and wider context. The “fabric first” approach combined with an airtight construction has led to a very low heating requirement that is powered by the photovoltaic panel array.
The architectural masonry has a subtle mix of textures with a burnished finish that is smooth to the touch at ground floor level, contrasting with the shot blasted finish to the masonry at the upper floors. The window fenestration is arranged as a formal repetitious element, set within western red cedar surrounds. At ground floor the windows are flush with the external surface and above the windows and their surrounds project from the façade, providing depth and texture to the elevations. The timber surrounds are treated to accelerate the weathering process and provide an even warm tone that harmonises with the masonry.