One man's trash...
As you journey through Mayfield, a story of the discarded unfolds. Discarded waste, discarded space, and discarded efforts in a discarded place.
This can be explained by Manchester’s (more specifically, Ardwick) current attitudes and socioeconomic climate, so a change that learns from these factors and can grow alongside its city must be made. Reimagined as part of Landsec U+I’s ‘Rebuilding Mayfield’, the project uses the methods of recontextualisation and repurposing to turn discard into regard.
Waste is harnessed from the site and its neighbours, processed for composting, then fed into the bug hotel or plantbeds and allotments for flourishing biodiversity and a happy, healthy, community. Engaging citizens at each phase, horticulture and culinary practice connects humans with the non-human; actualising and highlighting the benefits of slow development, signifying the vitality of our actions on the planet. A circular economy is created and the building stands as a symbol of comfort to the residents who have found a new sense of ownership over their home turf. The building is designed as a set of repeated units in modular construction which allows for flexibility and extended years beyond it’s initial life as a waste reuse and community centre. It encompasses several passive environmental solutions as simple as user-operable windows, and high thermal capacity cork insulation, hand in hand with various green systems like compost heat recovery and rainwater harvesting to keep operational energy use low and maintain regulated conditions for growing produce. Whilst targeted to be a hub of hope for those in need of it, the space is designed for use by all and aspires to embody an influence of slowing down across Manchester.
