30 PROJECT REPORT: SOCIAL & AFFORDABLE HOUSING
CLADDING
Following a large amount of discussion between architect and client, thermally-modified poplar cladding was chosen
All images © Richard Kiely
solar gain, and minimising the heating risks during hot weather – that itself had quite a big impact on the design of the houses and how they look.”
These nearly-south facing homes now gently follow the contours of the land, making the site work as well as possible in terms of access to the dwellings – with an entrance into the site leading to a public space in the middle of the homes. This access to the homes wasn’t just important in terms of the project’s functionality, the space was also utilised in creating a sense of community: “The idea was that it is a cluster of houses arranged around a central public green space, that all the houses look back onto and have an interaction with, with parking arranged off it and the road going around them.”
Materiality
The sloping site appears to have been a factor that runs through almost all aspects of the project, including the buildings’ materiality: “The terrain gave us an opportunity to utilise some of the high quality materials we had specified into the landscape, with elements of brickwork
WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK
integrated around the buildings and in the plinths of the homes, giving a little more interest into the level design.” The ultimate client, the Shropshire Housing Group, were continually consulted in the specification of such materials – and what they wanted was for the project to have a feel of the locality.
“In terms of the materials palette across the site, it is very typical of Much Wenlock,” explains Neep. This is especially exemplified in the clay bricks and clay roof tiles that can be seen across the development. All the way round the plinth of the houses are clay bricks, which have also been used within the retaining wall structures.
“The clay roof tiles themselves were actually quarried and made within 25 miles of the site – in Brieley Hill,” says the architect. “The lime render was from a company in Much Wedlock itself as well, and so we were able to support the local economy in that way.”
The timber cladding is something that went back and forth between the practice and client for some time: “They were incredibly keen on finding a timber
ADF SEPTEMBER 2019
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108
