coombes : everitt Your Sector NSC Ullenwood Estate Development
NSC Ullenwood Estate Development
Sector
Specialist Care – Estate Development Plan
Client
National Star College
Location
Ullenwood Campus
Project Value:
£6m
This project was launched in 2017 as part of a 5-10 year estate development initiative to provide additional educational and residential accommodation for National Star due to increased demand for its specialist facilities and the increasingly complex needs of their residents.
Our goal is to develop the campus in a way that enhances the experience of residents and visitors to the site and reinforces the collegiate feel and sense of community. The end result will be a series of interesting internal and external spaces to live, learn and relax in.
“The project team understand the needs of the young people we support and truly grasp the ethos and vision of the charity. That makes all the difference to a project like this. Not only will young people be able to live there comfortably and safely but the space will enable them to develop and thrive” David Ellis, Former National Star Chief Executive
The Brief:
• To develop a 5-10 year Estate Development Plan that could be delivered in phases.
• The scheme needed to deliver:
- 24 bedrooms in high quality specialist care accommodation for young people with a range of disability and support needs
- Day student provision including additional classrooms for life skills, life skills kitchen, therapy spaces and a large multi-use space
- A sensory building including sensory classrooms and personal care facilities
- External spaces for informal community use and private garden spaces for use by residents
- Additional administrative office space
- Adequate parking
- Overall improved delineation between public, semiprivate and private areas
• The scheme also needs to satisfy the overall goals and aspirations of National Star, specifically:
- Promote independent living and encourage the development of personal life skills
- Provide further opportunities for interaction with the wider community
Key Challenges:
• This was a long term on-going project which would require a flexible and creative approach with a constant re-assessment of priorities and opportunities at each stage of the project
• To deliver the scheme in phases in a way that ensures each element can be implemented in isolation
• To develop a scheme that is sympathetic to the existing historic buildings on site, the changing levels within the site and the wider setting of the Cotswold AONB including views into the site from a number of directions including the Cotswold Way
• The site needed to remain active in both its educational and residential capacities throughout the development with minimal disruption
Our Responsibilities:
Specialist Advice
Our Solution:
Like many campuses, the existing layout had evolved over time as needs arose. This exercise provided the opportunity to take stock of what was there, understand overall what was needed moving forward and then take a holistic approach on how to deliver the vision.
Sometimes the best option was not simply to create a new building. A large part of the planning involved working collaboratively with a multi-faceted team to explore how the current building stock was being utilised and to identify, where possible, creative solutions to re-purposing some buildings. Opportunities were identified through underutilised capacity as well re-thinking timetabling of uses and activities throughout the day.
Flexibility was also an important criteria of the design. This development is a considerable investment for the College and given the everchanging needs of their student cohort, it is important that the buildings have the capacity for future adaption to accommodate these.
The final design was a combination of new buildings and retrofit or re-purposing of existing buildings. As such, the phased approach to development reflected the complex balancing of priorities of the new spaces with logistical considerations to sequencing of construction and renovation, specifically;
• New ‘Outdoor Learning Centre’ created which would also act as a temporary hub for day students
• Existing day care student area re-purposed to create 7 new bedrooms
• Existing carpark re-located to create space for new accommodation
• New 13 bed high quality specialist care accommodation constructed on old car park site
• New ‘Day Student Hub’ created (also utilised by residents) which includes 4 classrooms for life skills, life skills kitchen, 4 personal care rooms and a large multi-use space. This building was designed to provide flexibility to re-purpose as residential accommodation, without the need for costly structural alterations, should the day student provision requirement fall in the future
• 2 outdated classrooms in an older building were re-purposed to provide administrative office space
• New ‘Sensory Building’ created which includes 2 sensory classrooms and personal care facilities
One of the key aspirations we had for the scheme was to create an attractive and engaging series of buildings and outdoor spaces to greet students as they arrive, and guide them through the shared amenities. The day student building marks the beginning of this journey which drops down to the private residential campus located at the lower end of the route. The external spaces are an integral element of this design and in addition to providing a route through the site that respects the privacy of residents, the spaces will provide a range of outdoor amenity areas which extend the communal, teaching and private spaces available to residents and students.
From the outset, a primary consideration was the location within the AONB. As such, we worked closely with a multifunctional team including landscape officers, ecology, and highways to ensure that the final design was optimised to meet local planning requirements for the AONB setting.
To minimise the impact on the surrounding area, we were keen to ensure that the development did not present a solid line of built form. Buildings were oriented to create gaps to allow for visual permeability into the site as well as providing an opportunity for some new tree planting to help layer the landscaped edge. Orientation of buildings and stepped gables were also considered along with changes in materials and varied roof forms including wildflower meadow green roof systems. Working with the natural topography of the site was also central to our design to minimise earthworks.
A fabric first approach to sustainable design was adopted. We utilised Passivhaus principles to create a low energy demand dwelling rather than simply providing bolt on green technologies. The result was a super insulated building shell with low levels of air permeability, high levels of natural light, mechanical ventilation incorporating heat recovery, low water use appliances and low energy fittings.
Balancing the functional and aspirational requirements of residents is always central to our design on specialist care projects. Key considerations include:
- Domestic finishes to create a home from home environment
- Clever storage for specialist equipment, concealed overhead hoists, circulation planning for wheelchairs
- Communal spaces to socialise
- Residential, therapeutic and educational needs in close proximity for students with limited mobility.
- Thoughtfully designed outdoor communal spaces with a mix of hard and soft landscaping for the students to enjoy all year round.
- Building orientation and landscaping to promote both privacy and enjoyment for residents
