Commercial Work & Social Housing

PLEASE CLICK ON THE PHOTOS BELOW TO VIEW GALLERIES FOR EACH PROJECT

Troy Court Redevelopment

Troy Court & Valley Court currently consist of seven 1970s 'point blocks' owned and rented by Les Vaux Housing Trust as affordable social-housing units. However, the existing buildings are of poor design and are in desperate need of replacement. 

We have proposed a complete redevelopment of the site to create 123 new, high quality contemporary apartments set within with a much enhanced green environment. 

This is our largest and most exciting project to date which will start on site in early 2017.

John Le Fondré Court Social Housing for Les Vaux Housing Trust

This was our first housing project for Les Vaux Housing Trust, for whom we have since completed several projects. large and small.  

The site, which originally contained a very unattractive office building and showroom/warehouse behind, was purchased by the States and we were then engaged to prepare plans for its redevelopment for social housing.

The ugly original frontage onto Victoria Street had destroyed an otherwise very attractive and cohesive Victorian/Edwardian streetscape and the project offered an opportunity to repair this visual damage by designing the new building to fit as seamlessly as possible into the row of adjoining period terraced houses. Whilst we could not afford to adopt the generous storey heights of the neighbours we were able, by careful planning of floor levels and applied decorative elements to disguise the differences and the end result has now transformed the appearance of Victoria Street.

St. Ewolds Residential Home (with Nigel Biggar & Partners)

This substantial project was commissioned by the Parish of St. Helier in the early 1990s to provide the Parish with a state of the art 60-person residential home, a day nursery for 80 children along with staff accommodation, archive storage and a family support centre. In its day it was the biggest building under construction in the Channel Islands.

At this time I was working for Nigel Biggar & Parrtners alongside Geoffrey Myers who was the partner responsible for this project. I worked on its design from initial inception through to the final detailing and was responsible for most of the construction drawings and assisting with running the project on site.

For me this project was a hugely formative experience that set the course for the rest of my career and gave me the confidence to 'go it alone' when the opportunity arose.

New Children's Respite Care Home for Les Amis Incorporated (by Les Vaux Housing Trust)

We were delighted to be asked to design this new community building for Les Amis which provides an essential respite facility for parents of children with severe learning difficulties.  The building includes special fittings for children with physical impairments to enable them to join in with the day-to-day running of the home.

It was very important that the new centre looked as non-institutional as possible so that parents and children felt completely comfortable and at ease when they visited. We took design cues from several local houses built during the Edwardian period that we thought exuded a particularly homely image.  

Victoria College Prep - Staff Room Extension and Memorial Garden

The aims of this project were twofold. Firstly, to enlarge the existing cramped staff room and, secondly, to transform the existing bland courtyard area into an attractive outdoor space at the heart of the school. 

The impetus for the project came from Kathryn Hayes who, with Headmaster Philip Stevenson, proposed the concept of a multi-function outdoor space that could be used for teaching and as a relaxing area for pupils and staff. 

Within the functional planning restraints imposed by the school building and a limited budget we were able to create a simple abstract garden design, reminiscent of a Japanese courtyard garden, with a nature pond containing a water-powered kinetic sculpture by Rylance Ltd.

The garden is dedicated to the memory of Kathryn who very sadly passed away before the project could be realised.

Sandybrook Sheltered Housing

This was the third phase of the complete redevelopment of Sandybrook Hospital carried out by the States of Jersey in the 1990s consisting of a new Residential Home, Day Care Centre & Sheltered Housing units. 

We took over this project from David Barlow who, having completed the first two phases, wished to retire. This phase contained 10 units of accomodation with special adaptions to kitchens and bathrooms to suit wheelchair users. 

Alan Holmes also prepared the majority of drawings for the previous two phases of the redevelopment (the residential home and day care centre) whilst working for David Barlow.