What made this project… Alscot Road by Greenaway Architecture

The judges for this year’s AYAs were impressed with Greenaway Architecture’s body of work, as the practice was named a finalist for Higher Education Architect of the Year (sponsored by Carlisle). 

In this series, we take a look at one of the team’s entry projects and ask the firm’s director, Duncan Greenaway, to break down some of the biggest specification challenges that needed to be overcome.

What were the biggest specification challenges on the project?

One of the greatest specification challenges on the project was the exposed in situ cast concrete slab edges. Several elements required careful consideration regarding the concrete slabs, including the thermal break between the exposed edge and the internal floor slab, the quality of the finish (not too rough nor too smooth) and the concertinaed brick walls, and therefore thermal line, between the floor slabs.

Another challenge was achieving all of the performance requirements on a tight budget.

What were the key requirements of the client’s brief? How did you meet these both through design and specification?

The challenge of the client’s brief was to find a way of achieving planning for over 140 generous and light student bedrooms on the site. We achieved this by welcoming the stipulation from the Southwark planners that they would only permit such a density on site (a seven-storey plus basement building) if they deemed the design to be exceptional.

What are the three biggest specification considerations on the project type? How did these specifically apply to your project?

Being student housing, the finish needs to be robust to maintain the building’s appearance through the years and reduce the need for annual redecoration. The exposed concrete helped to meet these needs by being appropriately tough, as well as giving a contemporary urban feel.

What did you think was the biggest success on the project?

The greatest success on the project is the fenestration, owing in large part to the quality of the internal spaces, not least because of the amount of natural light throughout.

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A palette of robust urban materials has been employed, which features a concertina brick facade, broken up by full-height, floor-to-ceiling windows which sit between cast concrete (thermally broken) floor slabs

A south-facing communal space acts as a hub for students and is complimented by a courtyard garden, roof terrace and balconies overlooking the park

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