Housebuilders scoop four major 2008 brick awards

Housebuilders were amongst the winners in the 2008 Brick Awards run by the Brick Development Association. Apparently competition in four categories was especially fierce. Yet four clear winners emerged: Best Private Housing – the Barge Arm Development, Gloucester; Best Public Housing – Broad Road, Sale; Volume Housebuilding – David Wilson Homes; and Best Craftsmanship – new house at Hayes, BerkshireThe entries were judged by a panel of experts chaired by Edward (Ted) Cullinan, this year’s Royal Gold Medallist for Architecture.

Barge Arm is a new build mixed-use regeneration scheme for Crest Nicholson in Gloucester Docks, on a site formerly occupied by car parks and sheds. It’s made up of two buildings, together providing 84 apartments, around an internal courtyard.

Edward Cullinan Architects designed the development. The brickwork contractors were Cowlin Construction, and Ibstock Brick supplied its Birtley Olde English bricks.

The judges were impressed with development’s ‘empathy with surrounding buildings.’ They added: ‘This new building acknowledges its context by taking clues from the existing warehouses without slavishly copying them.

‘Whilst there are a number of materials used externally, the brickwork provides a unifying theme that is fundamental to the success of the composition. The buildings create a number of external spaces that enhance the experience of living in well designed apartments.’

Broad Road used white brick to reflect light into common areas of this housing development – and that really caught the judges’ eye. It’s a difficult brick to lay but contractor Richardson Projects pulled it off, using Platinum Smooth White brick from Wienerberger to great effect.

Architect MBLA designed the development in an L-shape, forming an open courtyard facing south. It puts some distance between the living rooms and the street and ensures noise from a nearby tramline is minimised.

According to the judges, ‘this building makes the best of what initially appears to be an uncompromising site. The brickwork is exceptionally well laid. Difficult features are skilfully executed, contributing to the striking appearance of this elegant building.’

David Wilson Homes scored a hat-trick with three developments in Hampshire. It designed and built all three, and made exceptional use of brick’s incredible variety.

Heron’s landing in Fareham is made up of 16 contemporary-style two, three and four bedroom waterside homes. It used Ibstock’s Cheddar Red, Cheddar Golden and Audley Red Mixture Stock.

Eton Court, also in Fareham, represented a different challenge. It’s very much in keeping with the former building, and David Wilson Homes went out of its way to provide a new build that closely emulates the surrounds. Again, it chose Ibstock – Parham Red Stock and Berkshire Orange Stock.

And the developer opted for Ibstock again for The Hermitage, in Emsworth. The size of the buildings, the materials, detailing and windows are all in keeping with the look and character of Emsworth. Ibstock provided its Surrey Orange and Surrey Cream Multi bricks.

‘These three schemes demonstrated the developer’s sensitivity to the potential of different sites and a determination to produce high quality homes whatever the location,’ the judges said. They were also impressed by the ‘consistently high level of finish and variety.’

The Hayes House is in a class of its own. ‘If you’re going to use past styles, this is how to do it,’ the judges said. The house – designed by Robert Adam Architects – is in the tradition of those designed by Andrea Palladio around Venice during the 16th century.

The project involved knocking down an existing house and barn, to make way for the new home and garages. The plainness of the elevations meant the choice of brick and the detailing was critically important. Contractor RJ Smith built 12 sample brick panels. In the end, they opted for HG Matthew’s multi-red facing brick, laid in lime mortar.

‘The craftsmanship displayed on this Palladian house is awe-inspiring,’ the judges said.

Everyone concerned with the project – from client to architect to contractor – has demonstrated a determination to produce only the best.

‘The immaculate brickwork with penny-jointed mortar and elegant arches will long stand as a testament to the skill of the bricklayers.’

The Brick Awards are open to anyone, whether they’re architects/designers, owners, developers, housebuilders, specialist brickwork contractors or brick manufacturers. The only stipulation is that for all the awards – aside from the worldwide category – the project must feature clay bricks and pavers made by BDA members.

More information: www.brick.org.uk/awards/2008

Developers are urged to set new trends for eco-towns

BioRegional and CABE has published cutting-edge principles for the agencies involved in developing proposals for eco-towns have. Their report defines an eco-town as a place “designed to make it easy for residents to reduce their ecological footprint by two thirds and their carbon dioxide emissions by 80% below 1990 levels.

Entitled ‘What makes an eco-town?’ describes the features of places designed for living within ecological limits. These include generous space to grow food; ample tree canopy cover; attractive alternatives to shopping as the default leisure activity; and substantial reduction in car dependency. It provides clear criteria and practical guidance on how the sustainability of settlements can be monitored and tested.

Eco-town developers have a key role in the areas of housing and construction and home energy, which together account for 31% of a person’s carbon dioxide emissions and 26% of their ecological footprint. The recommended criteria include adopting the Building for Life gold standard for all residential developments, and a 100% renewable energy supply.

The report describes how a 60% reduction can be secured in the ecological footprint and carbon dioxide _{emissions associated with food through measures which include making space for food growing and links with local farms.}

The report recommends residential areas should enjoy tree canopy cover of at least 25 % to alleviate the impacts of climate change, with 15 % canopy cover in mixed-use or commercial areas.

SET NEW TRENDS

Developers are urged to set a new trend by designing places which present sociable and healthy alternatives to shopping and improve quality of life. Recreation provision should

include great parks and play spaces (including spaces suitable for teenagers); and sports facilities and green gyms (groups keeping fit while maintaining open space).

Consumer goods account for 14 % of an individual’s ecological footprint and the target should be to halve the amount bought in eco-towns, with other measures to secure this target including repair and re-use and swap shops.

The report describes how eco-towns can reduce carbon dioxide from driving – which generates almost a quarter of an individual’s carbon dioxide emissions – by 80 %. This entails providing a good, frequent and reliable low carbon public transport, and supporting walking and cycling with a density of 50-100 dwellings per hectare. A maximum of one car parking space per household is recommended.

The report notes that eco-towns should be as much about creating employment and a local economy as they are about building homes. This will assist in delivering the transport targets as well as improving social and economic outcomes.

The report is inspired by the government’s eco-towns challenge panel. It draws on BioRegional’s work on building sustainable settlements and on CABE’s understanding of what it takes to create workable and sustainable places. The criteria recommended in it are a contribution to the debate: they do not represent an absolute or final statement of what an eco-town should aim for.

TRAIILBLAZING PROJECTS

Sue Riddlestone, executive director and co-founder of the BioRegional Development Group and eco-towns challenge panel member said: “We need to see trailblazing projects worthy of the name eco-town. Done well, these real-life projects should advance industry best practice, inform government policy and show how we can reduce our impact to sustainable levels and have an improved quality of life.”

CABE and BioRegional would like to see these criteria by all new neighbourhoods or urban extensions, not just eco-towns. Richard Simmons, chief executive, CABE and an eco-towns challenge panel member said: “If eco-towns are to have a fundamental purpose, it must be to show how we can all live and work in well-designed, low-carbon neighbourhoods.”

Image shows the BEDzed development at Wallington, south London.

More info: www.bedzed.org.uk

Consortium chosen to build Peterborough zero CO2 Homes

Work is to commence on a neighbourhood of 344 zero carbon homes and commercial premises in Peterborough’s centre as part of English Partnerships’ innovative Carbon Challenge. The preferred developer for the 7 ha Phase 1 site has been named as pPod, a consortium set up between Morris Homes, Gentoo Homes and the architects Browne Smith Baker.

All homes are expected be zero carbon, meeting Level 6 of the Government’s Code for Sustainable Homes, years ahead of the 2016 target. The commercial units will be up to the BREEAM Excellent standard, this is one of the highest levels of energy efficiency and environmental performance.

The development will have a ‘green-spine’ of orchards and allotments plus canopy walkways together with 650 sq m of retail floor space and 614 sq m of community space. Food production will be encouraged by the inclusion of an edible garden concept and a community cafÈ that will sell locally produced goods.

English Partnerships, director of policy, Steve Carr, explains: “In the current economic downturn people are asking harder questions about the quality and value of new homes. The Peterborough pPod homes not only respond to climate change, they will also be more spacious and have lower energy bills

” This isn’t just about eco-living – it is about making new housing schemes a much better deal for owners and tenants by creating comfortable and cost-efficient homes for a range of incomes.”

The dwellings will comply with English Partnerships Quality Standards which include minimum sizes for flats and homes. It is proposed that a biomass combined heat and power (CHP) plant will provide the neigbourhood’s energy and it will benefit from low water usage through the incorporation of rain water harvesting and grey water recycling.

pPod’s proposal includes creative use of sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) to give character to new public spaces, including wetland swales and more formal water courses.

A planning application is to be made in early 2009 and pPod expects to start on site later in the year.

Richard Ellis, chair East of England Development Agency (EEDA),says: “It will be an exemplar project which will draw on and expand the expertise of the region’s environmental technology businesses, creating jobs and raising skills, and helping them maintain their global competitiveness in a sector that is estimated to be worth billions in a just a few years time”.

One of the consortium members, Gentoo, is an award winning north-east based people and property business, with a vision of improving the art of living beyond our imagination. It aims to generate wealth by “improving the lives of its customers and re-investing it through passionate people to create a climate for personal and collective opportunity.”

More information: www.englishpartnerships.co.uk