Centre for Post-Industrial Ecology: A Multi-Species Proposal for Crewe’s Former Industrial Heartlands
My design approach stems from the belief that truly resilient architecture lies at the intersection between sustainability, social equity, and contextual sensitivity, and thus I am driven by the aspiration to design spaces that are responsible and regenerative (both environmentally and socially), uplifting and vibrant, and reflect a profound connection to place. It is through these integrated approaches that I believe architecture is vital in shaping meaningful and enduring change.
*WINNER of Sheppard Robson Jicwood Prize for Innovation, Sustainability, and Clarity of the Architectural Concept*
The Centre for Post-Industrial Ecology draws upon nature's resilient inhabitation of industrial space to inform a lasting and greener site use for both human and non-human visitors. A scheme of multiple purposes, the wider site aspires to increase local biodiversity by minimising disturbance to new habitats, whilst simultaneously encouraging natural regeneration through phytoremediation strategies. With the wider site flourishing, the Centre becomes a place of collective ecological learning through both practical and theoretical channels, the building encouraging a celebratory experience in which curated and self-directed education are treated not as distinct but intertwined.
Whilst a forward-thinking program, the scheme also responds to Crewe’s lost architectural heritage, doing so through both a sustainable materiality and a contextual sensitivity. A timber observation tower recalls the town’s demolished ‘Big Bill’, with original bells and clock faces reinstalled, and locally-produced faience ornamentation between the reclaimed red brick reflecting now-demolished post-war reliefs. Natural materials are integral to the building’s construction, with a glulam and CLT structure partially clad with locally-sourced corrugated hemp board, utilised as a natural rainscreen system, whilst, expressed within the interior, a variety of exposed natural materials allow the building itself to act as an artefact for curious exploration.
Through encompassing a future-focussed yet contextually considered approach, the Centre for Post-Industrial Ecology hopes to provide Crewe with a lasting environmentally, ecologically and socially beneficial regeneration and educational proposal.
