Kendal College, Westmorland Campus
Overview
Kendal College faced a shortage of teaching space at its two existing campuses. Recognising the potential of the Westmorland Centre, an underutilised shopping centre in the town, the College secured a long-term leasehold interest in the first and second floors. This strategic move allowed the College to establish its Westmorland Campus.
Project
In response to this development, Redbridge was approached by the College’s architects, 10architect Limited, to collaborate on a swift turnaround for the initial phases of the new campus.
Working to a stringent time frame, Redbridge transformed former retail units, including staffrooms and storerooms, into contemporary and spacious teaching environments, staff rooms, and science laboratories.
Details
The project presented significant challenges from the outset due to limited as-built information available about the existing building. This required significantly more initial design by the client’s professional team than originally anticipated.
When eventually on site, Redbridge maintained close collaboration with the client, their professional team, and the management of the shopping centre to minimise disruption wherever feasible. In particular noise was a real concern, due to the College having some existing classrooms nearby, retail units being situated below our site, and noise transferring significantly through the building’s steelframe.
Ultimately, the team successfully delivered approximately a dozen classrooms within the stipulated timeframe.
