25
BUILDING PROJECTS
'Sustainability is great and everybody wants it, but often it doesn’t cost any less – particularly when you’re dealing with old listed buildings' – Roy Caddick, lead designer
now, which is more social leisure.” Something else that has changed is the concept of first and
second class for pools, changing facilities and even entrances. “The first class had a tall, relatively grand classical Dutch
gable entrance coming off the main approach,” explains Caddick, “and at the second class entrance at the back had a more homespun, William Morris-type Arts and Crafts style.” Visitors would pay to use cast-iron ‘slipper’ baths filled with
hot water and could rent towels. “The second-class slipper bath area was still there when we
started at Camberwell, but had been messed around with over the years and used partly for storage and partly for changing,” recalls Caddick. “The first-class slipper baths had been ripped out many years earlier, but the area had become derelict and was just used for storing rubbish.” When you visit the centre now, the makeover is apparent as
soon as you step inside. Previously the ticket office was attached to a tiny lobby, and school parties and families would find themselves queuing outside. “We altered the entrance arrangement, but managed to keep
the existing screens because they were part of the building’s listing,” says Caddick. “We flowed the entrance off to one side, which gives a big-
ger capacity to get more people in. You can just about get a whole school party in, but you can certainly get a few families inside, up to the barriers and the pay area.” This space, which once contained the first-class slipper
baths, has opened out into social areas including a café, all with access in compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act. The centre also gained a hearing induction loop and more fea- tures for the visually impaired. Pool, tanks and walls have been retiled. “The tank was seep-
ing, probably thanks to the truss gully arrangement around the edge,” says Caddick. “The existing structure has been refinished; and within the
existing large tank structure a secondary tank has been added at one end, which is the children’s pool: a small, learners’ pool.” A boom separates these pools. Its steps aid access for the elderly, young children and disabled users, a pool-side hoist has also been installed for those with very limited mobility. The pool hall roof was supported by timber trusses with
metal tie rods with slate on battens with tongue-and-groove boarding below, and no insulation. “To insulate that sort of roof, you either do it from the bot-
tom side up or top side down – but the roof must look as it did before you started,” explains Caddick. “If you strip off the
© David Mackenzie
bottom boarding, you leave the top in place if it’s stable, replace it if it’s not, and reboard the roof so it looks the same, but a bit thicker, with insulation added.” Flat roof areas have been re-roofed, with the more energy-
efficient plant concealed. Refurbishment of the pool hall, corridor, windows and roof
has been with an eye on energy efficiency. The plant that con- trols the pool environment has been upgraded; a new electric- ity supply uses the latest energy-saving lighting and new air- handling and heat-recovery units make the facilities more comfortable for visitors. Modern pools may have a glazed wall looking out into the
landscape, but Victorian ones were more private and generally did not have windows. However, the forward-looking architect in this case incorporated natural ventilation and roof lights
Continued on page 27...
Opposite: Camberwell Leisure Centre after refurbishment
From top: The boom that separates the pool and steps to aid young children, the elderly and disabled; the old Camberwell Baths before the makeover
© David Mackenzie
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