North London Collegiate School

Phase one of the development included the creation of the IDEAS Hub, an educational building supporting a curriculum of innovation in design, engineering, art, and science. The design also relocated the reception area, creating an identifiable and welcoming main entrance to the school. We provided M&E engineering, sustainability, and acoustic consultancy, as well as design and as-built whole-life carbon modelling. We are providing aftercare service to optimise the building's operation. 

The new IDEAS Hub sits within a constrained site and artfully intertwines with the existing and retrofitted maintenance barn, art building, and the CBT building, and is sympathetic to the architectural style of the wider campus.  

Our services design extends from the new to the existing buildings and required careful coordination with the design team to ensure that both portions achieve the desired system performance and architectural aspirations. 

The focus was to create comfortable environments using passive design strategies while maintaining a simple service design. The use of shading canopies, the placement of windows, and manual access to ventilation sections allows for natural temperature moderation. The fabric-first approach reduces the demand for heat and consequently the impact on energy consumption.  Using mixed-mode ventilation for most spaces also complements the fabric-first approach. Spaces are passively ventilated and cooled in the summer, and mechanically ventilated in the winter with high-efficiency heat recovery. The building is fully electric with no provision for gas, and heat is provided using a heat pump. Photovoltaic panels are integrated into the roof to generate renewable electricity. 

The building is designed to BREEAM Excellent.