The National Trust and leading architecture practice, GT3 Architects, have teamed up with Northumbria University to search for the next generation of talented architects as part of a project supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The Rising Stars creative partnership is a strand of the National Trust’s The Curtain Rises  project, centred on conservation and improvement work at the historic Seaton Delaval Hall, which was acquired by the trust in 2009. A live project inspired by the building was set up to give students an opportunity to flex their creative skills and offer invaluable industry experience. With more than 20 students from Northumbria’s BA Interior Architecture programme taking part in the project, Hattie Keel was crowned the winner with her striking structure centred around visual trickery. Hattie’s installation was unveiled with a celebration at Seaton Delaval Hall, where it has now been constructed for visitors to enjoy. After recently graduating from Northumbria, Hattie has secured a job with GT3 and is now working as a designer for the company, which has studios in Newcastle and Nottingham. She explained: “My time at Northumbria gave me great insight into the industry through numerous live projects, including this partnership with the National Trust. Throughout the process I also worked alongside GT3 Architects, giving me valuable career experience in the industry. “The Rising Stars competition put my foot in the door to life after graduation; the knowledge it gave me boosted my confidence in my creativity and design capabilities. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity provided by Northumbria, as this enhanced my portfolio and assisted in securing my role as a Graduate Interior Architectural Designer at GT3.” Thanks to a donation from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, since 2018 Seaton Delaval Hall has been the focus of The Curtain Rises  project, where as well as improvements to visitor facilities and extensive conservation work, the stories of Seaton Delaval Hall’s colourful past are now being brought to life through initiatives like the Rising Stars creative partnership. Speaking about her winning entry to the project, Hattie added: “My design was inspired by the playfulness and trickery of the Delaval family, who lived in Seaton Delaval Hall in the 18th century. I wanted to provide a space for visitors to sit and dwell within the structure. The seats therefore follow the natural folds of origami, enabling visitors to interact and engage with the structure. “I’ve really enjoyed the entire process and seeing my initial concept brought to life.” Paul Ring, Associate Professor and Head of Architecture at Northumbria, said: “In creative partnership with the National Trust, Rising Stars provides a folio of live project experiences for our students across many creative disciplines, and we are delighted that Hattie’s design was chosen and then built for the National Trust’s visitors at Seaton Delaval Hall. “GT3 worked with students to guide them through client meetings, design detailing, budget, and fabrication decisions. Hattie is without doubt a more informed and accomplished designer thanks to this experience and we are exceptionally grateful to GT3 and the National Trust for the opportunity, their expertise, and their support to our students.” Taylor Grindley, project architect at GT3, was the day-to-day lead on the work. He said: “We really enjoyed taking part in the Rising Stars project and working closely with the National Trust and Northumbria University. All the designs were fantastic and incredibly creative, but Hattie’s really blew us all away. “We worked really closely with Hattie to ensure all aspects of the design were viable and that we could bring it to life, with the construction handled by Raskl. We love educating and inspiring the next generation of architects and designers, so the Rising Stars project has been a brilliant experience.” Emma Thomas, the National Trust’s general manager of Seaton Delaval Hall, said: “Hattie’s excellent design helped us achieve our ambition of telling the stories of the Hall and our National Lottery Heritage Fund-supported project more creatively to members and visitors. The Rising Stars project has supported the employment and soft skills development of Northumbria University’s students and at the same time helped the National Trust realise several creative and conservation-based ambitions.” The installations are available to visit in the Saloon at Seaton Delaval Hall. There are a range of study options available within the department of Architecture and the Built Environment at Northumbria. Find out more here about the courses and facilities on offer.

INSPIRING DESIGNS for a new £21 million Northumberland leisure centre and library – which puts inclusivity, community pride, and connectivity at its heart – have been revealed by sports and leisure experts GT3 Architects as work gets underway on site. The design places the residents of Morpeth first, with the practice consulting key groups through workshops and VR sessions to reach a design solution that truly meets their needs. The key themes – connecting the high street, creating local pride for the centre, and offering a diverse range of uses – were developed and incorporated into the design to create a hub where leisure meets learning. The state-of-the-art scheme combines leisure facilities with a comprehensive library and learning suite to suit Morpeth’s diverse community. Paul Reed, associate director at GT3 Architects, said: “Inclusivity is at the heart of this project and it was so important to us that the leisure centre’s new facilities were designed to be integrated and connected to the town centre. “We really enjoyed hosting workshops, presentations, and VR sessions with stakeholders from the library, adult learning, and community groups to really get to know the people of Morpeth to deliver exactly what they need. “During these workshops we discovered the importance of the three key themes of inclusivity, community pride, and connectivity. The design therefore extends to the high street through a series of stepping-stones that figuratively and literally integrate and connect to the town centre ensuring inclusivity and accessibility. The town also has a strong identity, so we wanted to capture that pride and nod to the town’s ‘living amongst woods and streams’ motto. “The result was an accessible and community-focused design, with people at its heart, and we can’t wait to see the finished development. The facility is set to include a new two-storey library, customer services and adult learning classrooms as well as a six-lane 25m swimming pool with spectator gallery, a learner pool, spa facilities, a four-court sports hall, a new 100 station fitness suite, a dedicated spinning studio, a soft play area and a café that is open to the public. The scheme is funded by Northumberland County Council. Jeff Watson, Northumberland county councillor and cabinet member for healthy lifestyles, said: “The new centre will be a real asset for the town and a wonderful place with great facilities for residents and visitors to enjoy for many years to come.” The scheme will provide 550m2 of library space, including a group room, poetry corner, and children’s library, as well as 450m2 of learning space with five flexible classrooms, offices, and tutorial spaces. The centre will be located at Gas House Lane with a new library garden addressing the river from its north bank sat amongst the existing mature trees.   For further information visit www.gt3architects.com or join the conversation over on Twitter @_GT3Architects

Sport England estimates that inactivity causes one in six deaths and costs the NHS approximately £1 billion per year. With UK sport and leisure facilities now reopening their doors, we need to consider who is using these facilities and what barriers they face. GT3 Architects, a leading architecture firm specialising in sports and leisure, has undertaken a research piece as part of its Inclusive Design series to dig deeper into the issues people face when visiting leisure centres. “As people architects, we believe that a fundamental part of our role is understanding, anticipating, and designing for the needs of our users” says Paul Reed, associate director and head of sports and leisure at GT3. “This means not only ensuring existing, active users are engaged, but also creating exciting, beautiful, and well-balanced facilities to support underrepresented groups and demographics who don’t currently feel catered for at sports and leisure facilities. At present, leisure centres only cater to 16% of the population so these issues need to be addressed if we are to get more people active. “Our Inclusive Design series forms part of a wider research and development push led by a team of architects, interior designers and engagement specialists. For our first project, we looked specifically at caregivers of young children – this was defined as any adult who had experience taking a young child to a leisure centre.  “We discovered that 85% of caregivers surveyed find it incredibly difficult to deal with the challenges of a leisure centre – such as where to put a child while you get changed or how to get into the pool safely if your child cannot stand by themselves – particularly when alone. “59% of people surveyed said they are usually the only adult responsible for their child or children during a visit and the word ‘stressful’ was used frequently, with caregivers feeling that the experience is more difficult than they would like. “Encouragingly, 58% of people surveyed would like to visit a leisure centre more often. We believe that if facilities were designed with caregivers in mind, they would use the facilities more, increasing both their own and their children’s exposure to water and/or fitness activities.” According to the 2018/19 Active Lives Children and Young People Survey by Sport England, it was estimated that only 46% of the nation’s children are meeting the recommended level of activity. This has dropped even further with Covid-19 restrictions to just 19% of children being active for 60 mins per day. Paul continued: “It is critical to identify the barriers faced by users and ensure that any design meets the physical, mental, and social needs of caregivers. “By including a few simple additions – such as safe parking and access to the facility, a waiting area in reception, clear wayfinding, buggy stores near the changing rooms, and considered family changing rooms – it can have a massive impact on how caregivers use the space and ultimately create an improved experience. “Design is more than just shaping the physical environment. It involves addressing standards, practices, and behaviours as well as changing the way users are engaged. By considering space, layout, technology, and visual aspects, we can create a more family friendly and safer design that will ensure modern leisure centres are used and loved. “As an industry we need to fully understand how our designs can be used to provide more welcoming and inclusive facilities for all, improving both the physical and mental health of our communities in the process. As architects, we can play a part in encouraging activity, especially now that leisure centres are reopening, and we need to see this opportunity as a much-needed contribution to public health.” Judith Atkinson, project architect at GT3, led on the survey. She added: “This is the first report in our Inclusive Design series, so we really wanted to dig into the issues and barriers people face when attending a leisure centre. As a parent of a toddler myself, I felt it really important to highlight the difficulties caregivers often face when using facilities – it can be difficult taking a young child out of the home environment, particularly when facilities don’t meet your – or your child’s – basic needs.  “Even small things – such as making sure windows are in children’s sight line and they can hold a handrail when going into the water – make a big difference. I firmly believe that by understanding these caregivers’ experiences – such as knowing that 50% consider a waiting area within the reception important or that 96% would prefer a family-friendly cubicle – we can make leisure centres more inclusive. “Our caregivers research was such a success; we’re currently doing a similar piece of research into autism and dementia. Our hope is that we will be able to provide proven design solutions for our clients, which in turn will ensure their end-users feel supported. The result will be a far more inclusive, welcoming space for the whole community, and will hopefully encourage far more people to use exercise to support a healthy lifestyle. A win-win for everyone.” GT3 Architects is currently working on its next research pieces: designing for autism and dementia in Leisure Centres. As an award-winning architecture practice, with studios in Nottingham and Newcastle, the people focused firm champions an inclusive, sustainable, and engaging way of doing business that positions people at the heart of every project. For further information visit www.gt3architects.com or join the conversation over on Twitter @_GT3Architects