Town House, Kingston University

Project Description

Designed by Grafton Architects, the scheme responds to the university’s brief to ‘design the beating heart for Kingston University within a building worthy of the international stage’, while also respecting the project’s strong community access and sustainability priorities. The recipient of the RIBA Stirling Prize 2021, the judges praised the scheme for being “a theatre for life” and “a warehouse for ideas.”

Housing the university’s library and archives, dance studios, studio theatre, adaptable learning space, two cafes and a covered courtyard, the building’s innovative design has also allowed opportunities for ground-level access to be maximized along with views over Kingston from the upper levels.

We were appointed to provide MEP, environmental, fire and lighting consultancy services for the project, and worked with structural engineers AKT II and the design team to ensure the building incorporates innovative environmental and engineering strategies that make it operationally efficient and easy to maintain.

The building’s overall shape maximizes use of natural light, with each floor-plate size and depth working to provide the university with a 9,100m2 area. The result is a contiguous space for learning and performance that can easily flex, without major re-configuration, to suit ever-changing and competing priorities.

The scheme achieved BREEAM 'Excellent' in design, with its embodied carbon reduced through structural efficiencies and designing-out a carbon intensive basement.

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