Case study King’s College London
© Elliott Wood
The Department of Engineering at King’s College London needed new space for its diverse teaching, learning and research activities. The conversion in 2022 of a derelict 2-storey basement and unloved quadrangle between the King’s Building and Grade I-listed Somerset House has created vibrant new accommodation for the department and a social heart for the central London campus.
The design, with architects Hall McKnight, introduced four lightwells along the King’s Building – the largest two measuring 20m by 4m – and an oculus in the centre of the quad. This raised 2.5m-diameter aperture overlooks the central core, comprising a beautifully crafted exposed concrete spiral staircase and a lift. The publicly accessible quad features a new surface of resin-bound gravel with brass inlays, public seating, and new and retained balustrades on both sides.
A key challenge for Elliott Wood was to retain as much of the existing building as possible, where on the face of it, the building appeared to be approaching the end of its usable life. At the onset of the project, the existing basement had visibly suffered from water damage caused by failed waterproofing. Previous designers had dismissed the idea of retaining the building, but a carefully designed and selected suite of investigations and assessments identified significant re-use potential. This resulted in being able to justify keeping the full extent of the quadrangle structure, which allowed more budget to be focused on beautiful lightwell inserts, stair core and quad deck, to improve the quality of the space for current and future generations to enjoy.
Where new structure was required, Elliott Wood retained and integrated as much of the existing fabric as was practicable. For example, the new circulation core was designed to be supported off the historic foundations and to re-support severed beams from the retained structure. The core also reinstates stability that was lost through the removal of internal walls, to open up the space, and the creation of new openings in the King’s Building that better integrate access across the quad. For the lightwell inserts, Elliot Wood worked through complex geometry with the architects to integrate the services into the exposed concrete frame.
The result is an architecturally outstanding new higher education space with public benefits, including substantial carbon savings compared with a previous development proposal, which looked to demolish the existing frame. The benefits of retention on an operational urban campus go beyond carbon. Less demolition meant less dust and better air quality, while reduced vehicle movements created less congestion. Most importantly, minimised disruption allowed the department to continue in its mission of “helping to make a better world and to improve people’s lives.”
