36 PROJECT REPORT: HEALTHCARE BUILD & DESIGN
of larch cladding in the Lake District, but we went with Canadian Western Red cedar due to its longevity. We had a commitment from the supplier that it would last almost the double the length of other alternatives.” The majority of the building has a glulam timber frame, although sections of the pods are of timber-faced steel due to depth of timber that would have been required to achieve some of the angles. “We looked at doing it in glulam, but the walls were going to be so deep it was impacting a lot of the other space.”
Concrete use has been minimised – the slab is only around 100 mm deep, and the cement used includes about 80 per cent recycled GGBS. Mawson says: “We tried to make the building as light as possible with quite a thick skin around it.” The thick walls are filled with sheep’s wool insulation, providing an average U-value of around 0.18 W/m2
. With Cumbria famous for its PURGING PARALLELS
Based on advice by an acoustician, parallel surfaces were avoided in therapy rooms All photos © Simon Kennedy
sheep, and both Will and Annie having grown up on a sheep farm, he admits: “As soon as we knew we could do sheep’s wool, we were doing sheep’s wool.”
Interiors
The entrance is located at the eastern end, with the 4 metre high canopy welcoming visitors, as well as a large green wall next to the front door in the draught lobby. Planted with scented species such as jasmine and lavender, this “awakens the senses” says Mawson, and will help dementia sufferers who benefit from strong, memorable triggers such as smell.
PROJECT FACTFILE
Client: Sunbeams Music Trust Architect: MawsonKerr Contractor: Thomas Armstrong Structural engineer: JS Engineering Design Cost: £2m Floor area: 600 m2
The generous reception space – used for public fundraising events, sits between the larger pod (officially dubbed Glassical Hall after the charity’s patron, composer Philip Glass), and the music therapy pod. The space is enlivened further by a sculpted plywood desk and a ceiling spanned by an 18 metre bow-string steel truss running through a double glulam beam. With a slight hint of a giant musical instrument, this truss also bisects a circular rooflight above the desk, and was a satisfying alternative to having to thicken up the beams to span the space. “It’s also a celebration of structure,” says Mawson, adding, “I always think it’s really important to understand the structure of a building when you’re in it.” The desk’s glass top is etched with the soundwave that is produced by a harp.
The music therapy pod has two suites for performance or gentle sensory stimulation, either side of an acoustically-insulated recording studio, which is also hired out to
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generate additional income for the charity. The third pod houses a meeting space. The pods have skylights rather than windows to both increase the feeling of comfort for users, but also to avoid the acoustic problems which volumes of glass on walls can create. Their elongated hexagonal shape was partly derived from the advice of acoustic consultant Dr Douglas Doherty to avoid parallel surfaces in order to ameloriate acoustic reverberation. The main performance hall has also been carefully designed for optimum acoustics. Behind the oak boards, whose width and spacing varies to break up sound waves, there is a ply, acoustic insulation and plasterboard backing build up, and the ceiling is an acoustic raft to deflect sound. The “quite introverted, almost womb-
like” feel of the pods also helps the autistic service users with concentration, says Mawson: “We learned from the charity that autistic children and children with certain other disabilities didn’t need distraction, it could become very problematic. If you had an amazing view, people are going to run to that.”
Users with visual impairments have been carefully considered – for example the timber floors have been dark stained (dark pigmented in the case of the polished concrete in circulation and reception areas) to provide contrast with the walls.
Conclusion
The budget for a building of such high quality was relatively modest at £2m, however it all had to come from fund raising. Driven by Annie Mawson, this included concerts, one-off donations and sponsored bike and hill walks, and is just one reason of many to celebrate this project, whose contribution to the community has recently been recognised by numerous awards including one from RICS North West for Community Impact. Although the client and architect
“didn’t want a huge, look at me statement building”, says Will Mawson, at the same time “it was important for the charity that they had something which was an advert for what they do and showed they mean business,” with charities facing increasingly tough competition. This building does that in spades, however it is also a standout example of design for a very specific use which maintains the utmost respect for its location. This double-whammy could paradoxically make it something of a discreet icon in its field.
ADF JULY 2018
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