Going to WATER: Resilience & Innovation for the Built Environment was a great evening surrounded by like-minded people.
Richard Coutts attended the inaugural meeting of the Floods Advisory Group at N° 10, Downing Street last week.
Chaired by minster’s Andrew Percy MP, Minister for Local Growth and the Northern Powerhouse and Dr Therese Coffey MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State.
The National Flood Resilience Review sets out the Government’s commitment to develop and pilot a new model of self-financing investment, which is intended to increase local flood resilience and enhance urban regeneration.
The Advisory Group will now establish a framework in order to establish these objectives and will report back to Government over the forthcoming months. Sheffield has been identified as the pilot scheme.
Richard Coutts attended the inaugural meeting of the Floods Advisory Group at N° 10, Downing Street last week.
Read More
BACA architects has been shortlisted for this year’s British Homes Awards.
The shortlist was judged by a high-profile jury chaired by Robert Adam of ADAM Architecture. It included AJ editorial director Paul Finch, Jo McCafferty of Levitt Bernstein, BRE chief executive Peter Bonfield and architect Lynne Sullivan.
The annual awards, is backed by the Sunday Times.
Read more about it here https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/finalists-named-in-british-homes-awards-flood-resistant-house-contest/10009716.fullarticle
BACA architects has been shortlisted for this year’s British Homes Awards.
Read More
In collaboration with GL Hearn, BACA were asked to investigate the potential for the future expansion opportunities to support the growth of the West Sussex town of Littlehampton.
BACA carried out initial feasibility studies on over 30 sites to determine the most suitable opportunities. From the 30 sites 8 sites were considered potentially suitable to deliver the 1000 home strategic objective of the Littlehampton Economic Growth Area. Following identification of suitable sites a coordinated and integrated strategy was implemented to create sustainable development and infrastructure able to support the economic growth targets.
Due to the potential for flooding in and around Littlehampton BACA architects strategic specialism in flood mitigation solutions to create safe new development was drawn on to provide a coherent and feasible framework for future development.
The new development will not be fully defended and Makes Space for Water by retaining effective flood plain across the site where suitable. The proposals include flood resilient homes, flats over car parking that will be allowed to flood in extreme flood events and elevated mixed-use schemes.
In collaboration with GL Hearn, BACA were asked to investigate the potential for the future expansion opportunities to support the growth of the West Sussex town of Littlehampton.
Read More
With their expertise in flood mitigation BACA architects have developed proposals for a new gateway tower building on a strategic development site near Wembley that currently suffers from flood risk issues.
The under used site is directly opposite a mainline railway and underground station with a tributary of the Brent river running through the middle of the site. Currently there is no public access and proposals will look to provide strategic new public routes across the site and open up the landscape around the river for public enjoyment and create more sustainable natural habitats for local wildlife.
To develop a scheme that puts both the development and the river flood plain on an equal weighting Baca Architects have employed innovative flood mitigation techniques to the landscape and suggested low-risk ground floor uses while protecting the most vulnerable residential uses above.
Proposals explore a mixed-use scheme with car parking, commercial, public spaces and 60 residential units. Options explore several different ways to open up the site to create a unique conversation between the new towers and the river landscape below.
With their expertise in flood mitigation BACA architects have developed proposals for a new gateway tower building on a strategic development site near Wembley that currently suffers from flood risk issues.
Read More
On a small garage site in a prime Lewisham location BACA architects have developed a sympathetic terrace of four new family homes. The design provides four high quality residential units with front and rear gardens perfect for young and growing families.
Each dwelling is arranged over three floors and provides open plan kitchen, dining and living room that open up to the rear garden. Externally the houses provide a modern interpretation of the traditional London terrace typology.
Taking inspiration from the local context and with the aim of respecting and enhancing the character of the local area the materials chosen are yellow brick and white render. The facade articulation is directly inspired by the design of the neighbouring victorian stock. The building will be environmentally sustainable through solar orientation and high performance insulation.
This development is a high quality addition to this part of Lewisham and will be an exemplar and benchmark for future modern terraces around London.
On a small garage site in a prime Lewisham location BACA architects have developed a sympathetic terrace of four new family homes.
Read More
Planning has been granted for a contemporary new house within the Brockley Conservation Area of Lewisham. This contemporary three bedroom dwelling is enclosed by a ground floor brickwork wall to match existing garden walls in the surrounding area.
The Building forms a self-contained dwelling with primary views facing into a generous courtyard. The courtyard forms the heart of the modern open plan living space. The proposed building has been designed to mark the corner and entrance into the mews and create a strong connection between the primary road and the mews, leaving a positive legacy. The materials chosen are inspired from the local context and aim to enhance the character of the conservation area, as well as making the building sit comfortably within its context.
The scheme was reviewed by the Lewisham Design Review Panel prior to the planning decision. They described the proposal as ‘an exemplary scheme, which will be bold and imaginative with the potential to breathe life into an apparently unloved mews’.
Planning has been granted for a contemporary new house within the Brockley Conservation Area of Lewisham.
Read More
Planning has been granted for a bold new extension to the Creekside Discovery Centre within the Deptford Creek Conservation Area of Lewisham.
The Centre is run by local charity Creekside Education Trust who helps people of all ages and abilities to enjoy the physical and natural environment and help maintain and protect the local urban wildlife on the site and along Deptford Creek.
The repurposed building seeks to minimise the impact of expansion on the wildlife habitats in the site by using a playful portal frame that spans over the existing building to support new facilities. Recycled shipping containers are plugged into the frame to make new teaching and ancillary blocks, which double the buildings occupancy. A carefully laid out podium deck also provides a unique outdoor education experience with a sunken auditorium, over the top of the existing roof, that provides an elevated vantage point for visitor’s to view wildlife habitats across the site.
The exposed structure and raw materials are inspired by the local context and aim to preserve some of the industrial character of the area.
Planning has been granted for a bold new extension to the Creekside Discovery Centre within the Deptford Creek Conservation Area of Lewisham.
Read More
With a record number of entries, from small practices through to large commercial firms, BD Architect of the Year Awards announced the shortlist for 2016.
With great excitement, BACA architects has been shortlisted amongst the finalists for the category Individual House of the Year, again!
Link to the website http://awards.bdonline.co.uk/2016-shortlist/
The 12th edition of the awards is set to be bigger and more exciting than ever. They will take place on 9 March 2016 at London ExCeL’s Platinum Suite in collaboration with Ecobuild , the leading exhibition for the construction and energy market.
The awards will be held on the evening of Ecobuild’s Architecture day, creating one of the largest gatherings of architects in the UK. This new combined offering creates a valuable and unique opportunity for the most innovative and established practices to meet, celebrate and do business.
With a record number of entries, from small practices through to large commercial firms, BD Architect of the Year Awards announced the shortlist for 2016.
Read More
Robert Barker and Richard Coutts are hosting an exciting book launch event in the prestigious Florence Hall at the Royal Institute of British Architects on the 9th of February 2016.
This will celebrate the completion and publication of their new book ‘Aquatecture: Buildings and cities designed to live and work with water’ and is a chance to say thank you to all of the patrons, supporters and contributors who have been involved over the last 10 years.
Robert Barker and Richard Coutts are hosting an exciting book launch event in the prestigious Florence Hall at the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Read More
Planning consent has been granted for the 2nd Amphibious House in the UK in the seaside town of Salcombe. The innovative scheme, includes the construction of a new flood resistant dwelling within the envelope of an old stone store building and the replacement of a small boat shed with an elegant amphibious studio as part of the overall dwelling.
The UK's first amphibious house was featured on Grand Designs Season 16 Episode 8 – The Floating House: Revisited, and has been published in numerous articles.
Planning consent has been granted for the 2nd Amphibious House in the UK in the seaside town of Salcombe.
Read More
BACA Directors, Robert Barker and Richard Coutts, have again been giving their time to advise the press on solutions to flooding. With all the doom and gloom it is important to remind people that there are solutions out there.
Robert was asked to represent the RIBA for a Radio 5 live debate in York, whilst Richard presented on German TV channel RTL amongst others.
Important points that they both made were that there is a range of flood-proof building typologies to cope with different levels of flooding (illustrated). These range from avoidance, through to flood resistance, resilience and floating or amphibious.
They also made the point that the new British Standard BS 85500 on flood resilience, which was released in 2015, needs to be supported through Building Regulations and applied to works to existing properties as well as new ones, if it is to be more widely adopted.
https://shop.bsigroup.com/ProductDetail/?pid=000000000030299686
With all the doom and gloom surrounding flooding, BACA Directors Richard Coutts and Robert Barker say it is important to remind people that there are solutions out there.
Read More
During the UK’s most recent floods we have been inundated with enquires from news agencies from across Europe asking whether the threat of water can be mitigated. We believe it can, but only through an integrated approach that makes space for water alongside resilience and traditional defences.
A home for the flood resilient property showcase has been found at the BRE innovation park. BACA are now working with the BRE and industry experts to deliver this demonstration for the end of 2016.
After 2 years of writing and preparation ‘Aquatecture: Buildings and cities designed to live and work with water’ by BACA Directors’ Robert Barker and Richard Coutts (consisting of 50,000 words with over 500 illustrations) has gone to print. The book brings together over 10 years of research by the authors with exciting case studies from around the world. Early reviews have been very positive.
“This book will make a fascinating read for all those concerned with planning, architecture, design and engineering… by turning water into an opportunity rather than a risk.” Professor Chris Zevenbergen, UNESCO-IHE
“Aquatecture is an exciting contribution to the growing body of literature on how applying water-conscious design allows us not just to live with water, but to thrive with water.’ Elizabeth C. English, University of Waterloo School of Architecture, Cambridge, Ontario, Canada
“This book is an important contribution to meeting the challenges that climate change is providing to the built environment as it encourages new developments to be resilient, sustainable and attractive.” Dr Stephen Garvin, Director, BRE Centre for Resilience
“Defra wants to see more resilient places, where local people have the ability to reduce, prevent and cope with floods. This book can help professionals in the construction world understand what can be done to help this happen.” Robbie Craig, Defra Policy Official
Please follow links to our book and recent news
Water Lane, a recently complete elevated house in Oxfordshire:
During the UK’s most recent floods we have been inundated with enquires from news agencies from across Europe asking whether the threat of water can be mitigated. We believe it can.
Read More
The RIBA contacted BACA to review their discussion points with the floods minister Rory Stewart on the first week back in the New Year.
BACA were pleased to have the opportunity to raise their concerns that SUDS was not being implemented and where resilience measures were required through planning that they were not necessarily being implemented. We made the call for flood resilience to be made part of the building regulations such that even if work does not require planning consent that it should still fall under the building regulations.
This would be particularly relevant for insurance claims to repair flood-damaged property, which would be required to make improvements, by law. We also wanted to encourage the role of new development in making space for water rather than a simple blanket ban on all development in areas of flood-risk.
See RIBA newsletter http://riba.msgfocus.com/q/1bsp3HQXd91lhbZHFzt/wv
The RIBA contacted BACA to review their discussion points with the floods minister Rory Stewart on the first week back in the New Year.
Read More
The Deptford Creekside Visitor’s Centre, a local environmental educational centre, is up-scaling after 15 years. The centre has outgrown it’s existing building. To provide a solution for the next 15+ years BACA and Structurhaus Engineers have developed plans to build right over the existing centre.
A portal frame will support 5 repurposed shipping containers to expand the exiting classroom facilities and a new 1st floor deck will provide external teaching space. This will provide a playful teaching experience and creating a unique vantage point for visitor’s to view the wildlife habitats found across the site and the Creek. The ingenious solution allows the centre to continue during construction and minimizes the time on site by using prefabricated building solutions.
The new centre has won the support of the local community, the local MP and has now been submitted for planning consent after extensive pre-application consultation. A positive decision is expected early in 2016.
The Deptford Creekside Visitor’s Centre, a local environmental educational centre, is up-scaling after 15 years.
Read More
News of BACA’s recent awards has attracted international recognition with exciting commissions for work in Belgium, Dubai and Doncaster. Media attention has also been growing with recent coverage in France and Germany as well as closer to home.
In 2014 BACA won the AR/MIPIM future masterplanning award. This has lead to commissions in Belgium and the UK.
In 2015 Grand Designs revisited the Amphibious House to see the final finished building in all its working splendour and BACA won the NLA award for ideas to tackle the housing crisis. This has lead to an invitation to design a floating village in Dubai, which the team are currently working on with ARUP international.
News of BACA’s recent awards has attracted international recognition with exciting commissions for work in Belgium, Dubai and Doncaster.
Read More
This month, the V&A and the RIBA will be hosting a symposium for the UK and Ireland group of the International Confederation of Architectural Museums (ICAM). The event will discuss ways of getting people thinking about architecture, new architectural enterprises for museums and how to think creatively about helping the public to interact with museums’ architectural collections and archives.
Professional Illustrator and BACA Director, Richard Coutts, will be sketching live and speaking about the value of drawing, and how it can be used as a tool for raising awareness amongst the general public, private clients and in public consultations. The symposium is aimed at all members of ICAM-UKI, international members of ICAM and other museum or heritage professionals working with architectural collections, offering the opportunity to connect with colleagues across a range of architecturally engaged institutions.
Delegates will attend a drinks reception and a private view of the recently launched Philip Webb (1831-1915) exhibition. Drawing on the unparalleled collection of drawings and archives of the V&A and RIBA, the display brings together Webb’s diverse projects and his roles as architect and designer.
This month, the V&A and the RIBA will be hosting a symposium for the UK and Ireland group of the International Confederation of Architectural Museums (ICAM).
Read More
Bound by Chalk cliffs and the Medway river, the new residential development at Commissioner’s Place, Strood, Kent will provide 130 units with the emphasis on family homes and community.
Surrounded by public open space the development will infill a disused and abandoned quarry site to create a harmonious new residential community that will help to form connections between existing developments and sports facilities. The development slopes gently up from the river affording residents views of the Medway. A central ‘green street’ of trees, planted swales and landscaped gardens forms the community centre providing places to sit and play and creating a calm and tranquil focus to the new village.
The first public consultation event was held last week and introduced the initial proposals for Commissioner’s Place to Medway councillors and local residents. The pros and cons were openly discussed and suggestions were collected at the end of the event to incorporate into the proposals.
Bound by chalk cliffs and the Medway river, the new residential development in Strood, Kent will provide 130 units.
Read More
One year on from the original show, Kevin McCloud returns tonight to discover what has happened with one of the most ambitious Grand Designs ever - the UK’s first Amphibious House. The fully completed building is revealed to the cameras and put through its paces to findout if it floats.
The owners of this remarkable residence show how they have settled into their stunning and distinctive home. The couple’s dream of living in a flood-prone location with strict planning constraints was made possible by the construction the UK’s first amphibious house – a building that rests on the ground on fixed foundations but, whenever a flood occurs, rises up in its dock and floats there buoyed by the water.
You can catch the story of this pioneering building, see how it has progressed and watch new landmark events since its completion tonight at 9pm on C4.
One year on from the original show, Kevin McCloud returns tonight to discover what has happened with one of the most ambitious Grand Designs ever - the UK’s first Amphibious House.
Read More