DESIGN

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The BeanLearningResource Centreatthe
independent Brentwood School, Essex, provides
the anew two-storeyextension to the existing
library,transforminghow thebuilding is used and
in tune with the demands of the twenty-first
centurytechnological landscape. The project also
incorporatesthe redevelopment of an adjoining
1960s teaching block –the Cunliffe Building –
increasing learningspace and creating asense of
coherence between the buildings.
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The design responds to the existing grainofthe
schoolsite, whichischaracterised by aseries of
courtyards and quadrangles. The two new
interventions –the Bean LRC and the Cunliffe
Building –emphasise this approach, physically
connecting the school’s central gardens through a
new arcade. This arcade takes its cue from anearby
cloister and informsthe rest of the elevation,
creating an arrayofarchesthat formapicturesque
backdrop to themuch-used ‘stage lawn’.
In seeking to respond to the existing built context,
both buildings areclad in redbrick and composed
in similar proportionstothe neighbours. Asubtle
brick patterning (English Bond)used on the
Cunliffe Building adds visualinterest to the facade.
The existing two-storeyBean Library, completed
in 1929 and named after EdwinBean (headmaster
from 1891-1913), encompassed two floors at the
centre of the campus, but it was unable to
accommodate the present-day needs of the
school’s 1,200 pupils. The oldlibraryhas been
retained on thefirst floor,preserving the character
and integrityofthe building and contrasting with
the contemporary spaces.
IBSTOCK DESIGN •AUTUMN 2016 •27