Nestled in the leafy woods of Hertfordshire, within the grounds of Oaklands College, sits the recently-completed 2 storey student accommodation – ‘The Homestead’. Bond Bryan were appointed to deliver the scheme from detailed design (stage 4) to completion.
This 83-bedroom residential student-living project as part of a £62m regeneration scheme, the first of several phases to transform its St Albans campus and to encourage a permanent student presence within the grounds.
The en suite bedrooms consist of 4 wheelchair-accessible rooms and 2 wardens’ rooms, as well as student kitchens, a student Social Learning Space, collaborative workspaces, lounge areas, a pastoral space and drying rooms.
To ensure that the new building is in line with the College’s eco-friendly commitment, the building incorporates natural ventilation alongside sustainable underfloor heating using a ground source heat pump.
A careful choice of materials, simple shapes and forms have been incorporated into the design to take advantage of the agricultural nature of the site within its greenbelt setting and to resonate with the ‘barn-style’ architecture.
The existing building is to be fully refurbished with the operational accommodation and appliance bays being retained at ground floor level.
Factory 2050 is the UK’s first fully reconfigurable assembly and component manufacturing facility for collaborative research.