Category: Sustainability

Ambitious Regeneration Frameworks for 8 Districts over 300 hectares of central Glasgow championing sustainable urbanism principles including the repopulation of the city centre (doubling to 40k), supporting a compact missed-use 20 min city, reducing the impact of the M8 motorway, ending the car dominance of urban streets and spaces, retrofitting under occupied buildings, championing a circular economy, urban health and wellbeing and integrating green-blue infrastructure in the cityscape including new urban green spaces and a River Park extending along the Clyde. This project was co-designed with over 9,000 contributions from Glaswegians and local and national government, agencies and stakeholders to promote enhanced quality of life for all.

Use of innovative sustainable features, such as an earth duct, assisted natural ventilation, high levels of insulation, compact building form, thermal mass, low infiltration rates, good levels of daylight, dimmable LED lighting, variable volume variable temperature heating, greywater recycling, sourcing of local materials/labour where possible and a building management system contribute to a reduction in CO2 emissions and a BREEAM Excellent rating.

First ever BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ award in the UK under the 2014 New Construction version of BREEAM integrating solar photovoltaics, an energy-efficient external envelope and a ground source heat pump to ensure the building has a net zero energy in use. Innovative features include solar chimneys, recycled paper insulation, re-used cycle racks from the Commonwealth Games and an integrated bicycle repair station.

BREEAM Excellent rated teaching and research facility incorporating Hemcrete (hemp) insulation to the external walls and a biomass boiler, together with solar hot water panels, photovoltaics and ‘wind catchers’ to assist natural ventilation.

Mixed-use urban regeneration project including health centre, community services hub, affordable housing and local shops in Butetown, south central Cardiff. The project includes the first BREEAM Excellent Health Care Centre in Wales and 61 new homes designed Code for Sustainable Homes Level 4 and Level 5. To achieve these stringent environmental targets, the designs incorporate rainwater harvesting, biomass fuelled heating and high levels of thermal insulation.

BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ primary school and nursery, pushing beyond the BREEAM rating of Excellent required by the Welsh Government to become an exemplar for future school buildings. The completed project has been certified with an EPC of A+ (zero carbon in use).

Masterplan for Clyde Gateway and Forestry Commission Scotland to remediate and transform a former reservoir, quarry and landfill site into a community woodland in the East End of Glasgow. Subsequently delivered the Park features over 15,000 new trees, 2.5km of walking and biking trails, a new footbridge bridge, boardwalks, bouldering, natural play, sculpture, picnic, and events areas contributing to the regeneration of the area adjacent to the Commonwealth Games Village.

Designed to significantly exceed BREEAM Excellent requirements this 4 storey library and learning resource campus hub integrates an array of passive, fabric first design principles to reduce the long-term running costs and avoid reliance on micro renewable technologies. Appropriately (for a library) the building includes high thermal insulation from recycled newspaper, a green sedum roof, whole building natural ventilation and natural daylighting. At least 10% by value of materials used were recycled/natural.

Brief to deliver 49 ‘very sustainable homes’ to pioneer an approach to energy efficient housing that was transferable and the housing association could adopt in future. Breathable wall construction, excellent air-tightness, very high levels of insulation comfortably exceeded Technical Standards and anticipated future regulations. This fabric first approach minimised energy consumption to achieve a low carbon approach that is robust, easily maintained and negated the need for traditional domestic heating systems.

Community-led participatory planning and design charrettes, funded by Scottish Government, focusing on sustainable placemaking and integrating environmental, social and economic regeneration in over a dozen towns and cities across Scotland. Each charrette developed an action plan which has subsequently helped secure place-based investment and funding for regeneration and informed new sustainable placemaking policy in Scotland.