modern councilheadquarters
The Brocks Hill project saw the redevelopment of the existing Brocks Hills Visitors Centre to create a sustainable new headquarters for Oadby & Wigston Borough Council (OWBC). The scheme addressed the Council’s need to replace their existing headquarters, previously housed in a Grade II listed 1970’s built office, facing increasing maintenance bills and operational running costs while requiring significant refurbishment.
Procured through SCAPE, in partnership with Kier and Perfect Circle, the £2.7m scheme aims to significantly reduce the Council’s utilities while delivering modern headquarters which are economical, flexible, and sustainable.
Sector
Commercial
Services
Interior Design
Status
Completed June 2023
Client
Oadby & Wigston Borough Council
Location
Brocks Hill Country Park, Leicestershire
Scheme value
£2.7m
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requirements
The brief was to identify a location on Council-owned land to develop a new fit-for-purpose building. As a result of the Covid pandemic, OWBC had adopted more agile and hybrid ways of working and wanted a local authority premises which would support this.
Following Lungfish’s appointment and undertaking a number of feasibility appraisals including new build options, it was established that it would be more cost effective, time efficient and sustainable to redevelop an underutilised facility that OWBC already owned – Brocks Hill Visitor Centre.
Constructed in 2001 as an ultra-low energy visitor centre in the heart of a country park, the unique, glulam timber-framed building was already a much greener option. However, the scheme faced challenges to ensure OWBC’s objectives were achieved, including developing a design which would deliver dynamic, multi-use working environments for varied Council functions and activities, increasing the building occupancy within the building constraints, and delivering the construction works with minimal impact on the country park and adjacent live leisure centre.
With no major physical works to the building exterior, this project focussed solely on the internal redesign, refurbishment and fit-out to create a high-functioning, adaptable office space.
Curating adesign language
distinguising between old and new
Throughout a five-month pre-construction period, our collaborative design approach between all key parties delivered solutions in line with the Government Workplace Design Guide, with care taken to retain the building’s unique features.
It was important to retain the character of the building whilst maximising the usability and flexibility of the of the space. The use of high quality materials with a natural aesthetic seek to reflect the building’s external environment, including substantial timber and glazing. Curating a design language to highlight what was retained to what is new, the existing timber has been refurbished, and the new materials are painted a different colour.
We have created an activity-based workplace with a high focus on inclusivity and flexibility, with sustainability at its heart. The interior design is mindful of the building’s constraints and exterior, and enhances the building’s unique features to create the various zones required with a seamless transition between the existing interior and the refurbished elements. This has helped fulfil OWBC’s vision with a look and feel which complements their brand and space.
The project was delivered on a tight budget, so through our creative design and problem resolution we were able to achieve value for money with an internal environment reflective of a much more substantial budget.
Outcomes
Initially designed as a two-storey building, the centre's hall was a double-height open space. In order to increase the capacity of the building, we added a mezzanine in to this space. The addition of the new mezzanine however, left the ground floor chambers room limited of natural light. A light shaft was designed, sacrificing a small proportion of first floor office space to improve the quality of ground floor space, providing a plentiful source of daylight for the groundfloor, and high-level windows supply daylight for the mezzanine area.
Downstairs, the installation of bi-folding walls create up to three different rooms, ensuring that there is no compromise on usage and the building is as flexible as possible.
Now designed for office use, 30 members of staff can make use of the mezzanine's flexible hot desking area at one time, whilst downstairs, the flexible space is designed to act as a chamber to hold committee meetings and public-facing for up to 100 people.
Additionally, by relocating the building entrance from the car park to the country park, the new council headquarters has an established presence that links seamlessly within the parkland.
Full replacement of building services, including HVAC system, air source heat pumps and BMS, updates the building to the latest standards and is expected to reduce the Council’s utility costs by 80%.
The Brocks Hill conversion has met all of its key objectives. OWBC now has a headquarters which reflects their brand, ethos and agile working policies, offering Council staff enhanced health and wellbeing opportunities and a variety of spaces and places to help inspire, motivate, retain, and attract talented staff.
The Council recognised a need to reduce its operational costs, and relocating to this new head office facility has helped to achieve this vision. It’s a fantastic achievement by all parties and we are very happy with the result. We expect an 80% reduction in utility costs, whilst providing staff with a most attractive work location both internally and externally.”
David Garner, Regeneration Project Manager of Oadby & Wigston Borough Council
