Plans for Cambridgeshire’s new town, Northstowe, have taken a major step forward. Proposals for Inholm, a contemporary Fenland village and the second phase of Northstowe, have been granted approval by South Cambridgeshire District Council’s Planning Committee. Innovative modern house builder ‘House by Urban Splash’, a new company backed by regeneration
Bristol continues to build on its ambition to be carbon neutral by 2030 with a highly sustainable development of 50 affordable homes currently underway. Community development, high levels of energy efficiency and environmental enhancements are leading values of the Shaldon Road scheme, being delivered by National contractor United Living in partnership with United
Windows, curtain walling and doors feature on the new London Screen Academy. Architectural glazing systems by leading UK manufacturer Kawneer, including aluminium heritage-style windows appropriate for the conservation area, have helped to transform the façade of an old radio and television factory into the new London Screen Academy. Kawneer’s GT70S
Adding a conservatory to your home is a great way of making more out of the space you have, whilst also increasing your property’s value. A conservatory is a feature that has been popular within the home for years, with many benefits from additional natural light, to extra entertaining space.
Plans for Cambridgeshire’s new town, Northstowe, have taken a major step forward. Proposals for Inholm, a contemporary Fenland village and the second phase of Northstowe, have been granted approval by South Cambridgeshire District Council’s Planning Committee. Innovative modern house builder ‘House by Urban Splash’, a new company backed by regeneration specialists Urban Splash, Homes England and Japan’s biggest house builder, Sekisui House, is bringing the project forward. Inholm comprises a total of 406 modular homes sitting within the context of Northstowe’s masterplan and is inspired by the area’s rich history and previous settlements. The new neighbourhood quarter will be defined by a perimeter of landscapes; country park, sustainable drainage swales, ecological zones and an education campus. When complete, it will be the largest in the UK to be manufactured offsite using modern volumetric construction. Proctor & Matthews Architects is the lead architect and master planner of the site. The village will encompass a range of housing typologies, later living homes and mixed-use buildings. The modular homes will include designs by architects shedkm, which can be configured by the buyer to their own design before being built in a factory and delivered to site. Mark Latham, Regeneration Director at House said: “We are delighted to launch our first homes in this part of the country and are excited about the opportunities ahead at Northstowe as we contribute to this emerging town. “We want to break new ground and surprise people using the latest building methods combined with bespoke designs. We are offering a range of customisable homes and apartments to suit a wide range of modern families, lifestyles and budgets. We can’t wait to get going.” Stephen Kinsella, Chief Land and Development Officer at Homes England, added: “I’m delighted that planning permission has been granted for the first homes to be built on Homes England land at Northstowe, which is a significant step forward for the new town and an important milestone for our joint venture with Urban Splash and Sekisui House. “This is a really ambitious proposal for 406 homes using modern methods of construction, and the quality design of these homes really reflects our ambition to deliver outstanding places.” The customisable homes will be launching officially late Spring/ early Summer 2020.
Bristol continues to build on its ambition to be carbon neutral by 2030 with a highly sustainable development of 50 affordable homes currently underway. Community development, high levels of energy efficiency and environmental enhancements are leading values of the Shaldon Road scheme, being delivered by National contractor United Living in partnership with United Communities and the Bristol Community Land Trust, with support from Bristol City Council and Homes England. The homes will provide residents with a high level of occupant comfort while using very little energy for heating and cooling minimising each home’s carbon footprint. Built to ‘PassiveHaus’ principles, the energy efficient properties will each feature a mini ‘Shoebox’ ground source heat pump connected to an ambient shared ground loop array, supplied and installed by Cornish manufacturer Kensa Heat Pumps and Kensa Contracting. Complementing the low-carbon ground source heat pumps will be a MVHR (mechanical vented heat recovery) system, making the homes even more energy efficient and further lowering fuel bills for the residents. Encasing these renewable heat technologies, the homes will be constructed using a single skin ‘Porotherm’ block, cutting construction time and delivering improved thermal properties over traditional construction. Solar PV panels will also feature in the development to further reduce costs, whilst supporting a green transport plan which features electric car charging points, a car share scheme and improved pedestrian and cycle access. Communal green space around the homes is also being created with a dedicated and protected green corridor for biodiversity and wildlife including bats, birds, bees and other insects. Further to the development’s ultra-green credentials, Shaldon Road is also one of the biggest ‘self-finish’ projects ever undertaken in Bristol. The development will provide a mix of two, three and four bedrooms which are a mixed tenure of shared equity and affordable rent. Future residents have committed to taking part in the ‘self-finish’ process which involves them making design decisions enabling them to tailor their new homes interior elements, as well as undertaking physical works on their properties including second fix carpentry, fitting kitchens and decorating. The ‘self-finish’ approach is aimed at making properties more affordable and coupled with the lower energy costs associated with the ‘PassivHaus’ design principles and renewable technologies, the project hopes to set a new standard for truly sustainable development. Caroline Lewis, New Business Manager at United Living, said: “The start of this project represents the culmination of a lot of hard work and dedication from the whole project team. United Living are very proud to be involved in this project as it embodies all of our core value, especially our commitment to creating communities not just building homes. We are acutely aware of the need to develop and implement solutions to tackle the housing shortage and climate change, at United Living we are constantly working with our partners to deploy innovative ways to address these issues, the solutions we are using at Shaldon Road are a small part of this.” Anna Klimczak, Interim CEO at United Communities, said: “We are thrilled that work has started on this site. The Shaldon Road scheme will bring much needed new homes to the Lockleaze area and transform the lives of the incoming residents, many of whom are from the local community. The scheme has empowered residents to make decisions about their new homes many of whom have been involved from the start. Residents will also be gaining valuable practical skills through the self-finish model. Communities are at the heart of what we do at United Communities; 30% of our new homes will be community-led projects by 2024. We look forward to the scheme progressing and the residents enjoying their new homes.” Lindy Morgan, CEO at Bristol Community Land Trust, said: “I am thrilled that this pioneering scheme has now started on site. It has been an immense learning curve for the Bristol CLT board and staff, and even more so for the future residents, some of whom have been involved for a number of years. The passion of all those involved has driven the project forward, and we cannot wait to see it coming out of the ground. The scheme will deliver life-changing opportunities to those who have been matched with a home at the scheme and has always had community at the heart of it.” George Gillow, Business Development Manager, Kensa Contracting: “It is a pleasure to be involved in the development of high quality, energy efficient housing, specifically built for local families, whilst also helping Bristol to reduce their CO2 emissions and improve local air quality with British-made ground source heat pumps.”
Windows, curtain walling and doors feature on the new London Screen Academy. Architectural glazing systems by leading UK manufacturer Kawneer, including aluminium heritage-style windows appropriate for the conservation area, have helped to transform the façade of an old radio and television factory into the new London Screen Academy. Kawneer’s GT70S slimline renovation open-in windows were the “focal new element” of the renovation of the façade of the four-storey building at Highbury Grove in Islington, north London, where Kawneer’s AA®100 zone-drained curtain walling and series AA®190 TB entrance doors also feature. The GT70S windows with narrow sightlines were installed over 12 weeks by a team of eight from specialist sub-contractor and Kawneer dealer JPJ Installations throughout the 8,050m2 building, with the AA®100 curtain walling, which also has narrow 50mm sightlines, used on the rear elevation and the series AA®190 TB severe-duty welded doors used on the main entrance. This cutting-edge new free school by the Department for Education provides world-class film industry focused vocational training, including behind-the-camera roles, costume design, production management, distribution and marketing, alongside a broader curriculum, for 17 to 19-year-olds. Procured through the Southern Construction Framework, main contractor Willmott Dixon Interiors worked closely with the design team from Architecture Initiative to deliver the project over 13 months, ready for the first intake of students in September 2019. Sponsored by Working Title Films, the end user is the Day One Trust. The building, also formerly a London Metropolitan University facility, was subject to a dramatic internal reconfiguration, with the core of the deep-plan multi-storey industrial space demolished and replaced with a steel-framed three-storey film production studio and supporting facilities. The general teaching and workshop spaces wrap around the centre core, responding to and utilising the existing external envelope which has remained largely unaltered in appearance. The insertion of a new rooftop courtyard with film theatre and extensive views over London completes the arrangement and provides informal social space for staff and students. Architecture Initiative’s brief was to design a creative education facility that would provide an inspirational learning environment alongside specialist technical facilities to train students in all aspects of digital and film technologies. The practice’s Lee Mainwaring said: “We combined the natural features of the existing building – large windows, generous floor-to-ceiling heights, exposed finishes – with state-of-the-art new technical training facilities based on extensive research and analysis of professional film studios, to create a unique building for students and the wider community. “The building is in a conservation area so any works to the external façade were carefully considered. We also needed to work with current building regulations for schools to ensure we could provide a safe learning space but which also enabled us to make the most of the existing building and provide professional standard technical spaces. “The local authority planners were really happy with the upgrades to the existing building façade which had been unsympathetically altered in previous times.” He added: “The external windows are the focal new element of the façade renovation. The Kawneer window system, which was offered by the contractor as a more cost-effective alternative, effectively met the technical requirements needed whilst achieving a 1930s warehouse “Crittall” window lookalike. “The windows have greatly enhanced the existing façade as well as referring to the building’s history with its design. The final product was of great quality and in keeping with the design concept.” He concluded: “The façade has been visually transformed, in part through the addition of the new windows that are perfectly in keeping with the heritage of the building. From a previously dilapidated appearance, the building has been rejuvenated. We are extremely happy with such an incredible looking product.” The creation of the London Screen Academy follows a recent report published by the British Film Institute which suggested the money spent on production in the UK reached a record level of £3.16 billion across all sectors including film, television and console games. Production investment in the UK has grown by 63% over the four years to 2016.
Adding a conservatory to your home is a great way of making more out of the space you have, whilst also increasing your property’s value. A conservatory is a feature that has been popular within the home for years, with many benefits from additional natural light, to extra entertaining space. Whilst there are a range of things to consider when it comes to adding a conservatory to your home, there are a large number of reasons to help you make the right decision as to whether a conservatory is or isn’t right for your home. Increased Living Space One of the great things about having a conservatory is the ability to open up your home to more living space. Having additional space to relax, entertain and simply live is always beneficial and going to really help you make the most out of your home. From a relaxing space to sit back and soak up the sun on a beautiful summer’s afternoon, to the perfect area for a family gathering with plenty of space to party the night away, your conservatory can serve more than one purpose and add great personal value to your home. A very common feature within conservatories today are sliding or bi-folding doors. Having sliding doors within your conservatory give you the ability of opening up your living space with your garden, creating even more space to enjoy for a multitude of different purposes. Unlimited Natural Light When it comes to interior design, one of the main factors to any successful design and space is lighting. Having a strong flow of natural light filtering through your home is a huge benefit and something many homeowners have high on their list. A conservatory provides unlimited natural light through the many windows and doors that make the space as open and airy as desired, which in turn allows natural light to filter through and lift the atmosphere throughout your home. Added Property Value Just like any other extension or project you carry out in the home; a conservatory brings added value and instantly boosts the overall quality of your property. Not only is a conservatory bringing additional space, but it’s also a great opportunity to add an energy efficient touch to your property too. Many potential buyers will be on the lookout for homes with a conservatory or sunroom, as it’s a great feature to be able to make the most of any enjoy all year round. Bringing a Stylish Aesthetic Conservatories are one of the many interior design features that can bring a really stylish aesthetic to your property. With this additional room attached to your home, you can create a unique look that stands your house above the rest in the area. From the colour and framework, to the interior décor choices, your conservatory can create a stunning focal point within your home and really help to boost the overall aesthetics in a really positive way.
