In 2010-2011, following the announcement of HS2, Glenn Howells Architects were commissioned by Birmingham City Council to re-evaluate their master plan, given that this major infrastructure would have quite an impact.
There are some great examples of stations becoming a successful part of the fabric of a city, where thinking of them as more that just stations can really benefit, like the development of King’s Cross & St. Pancras in London. There are also examples where huge pieces of infrastructure are a stum- bling block in a city’s connectivity pattern; separating and segregating areas that would otherwise benefit from being connected. This is obviously what we wanted to avoid.
Part of the master plan included Eastside Locks; how the new park would arrive and how development around the park would then subsequently be phased.
Birmingham City University were relocating to the area and that’s when Alumno were introduced to the bid to develop student housing which would be regarded as part of the campus experience. We were brought on as the architects and saw this as a great opportunity.
We’ve been based in Birmingham for 28 years. It’s our home, so therefore it was very important from both a professional and personal objective to get this right, because it was going to be transformational for this part of the city; a catalyst project. Having met David Campbell a few times, I knew we shared a very similar vision about what buildings do, beyond just functioning as accommodation. There’s so much they can do in terms of cityscape and the public realm, connecting places and bringing communities together.
Eastside is a post industrial site, historically used for warehouses that were butted right up against the canal, but the area had long since become an empty, bulldozed wasteland. This was a great opportunity for regeneration within the growing boundaries of the city centre and already enjoying excel- lent transport links. It was also going to be on the doorstep of the HS2, so a sustainable location with huge potential growth.
It made a lot of sense that a really high quality inclusive student housing scheme could work well together with the relocating University. Apart from
Birmingham University Locks
the obvious advantages for the students, one thing we wanted to avoid was the campus becoming a ghost town in the evening, when the lectures stop and the library closes.
When housing is brought in, next to businesses, next to a park, areas as a whole starts to become a vibrant new neighbourhood for the city. Eastside is being developed along these lines. There’s the Millennium Point, which is home to many tech start-up companies and a wide range of science, engineering and creative industries. There’s the first new city park since Victorian times. There’s one of the internationally renowned British Conservatoires and an Architecture School. The university is not just teaching space, but also invests in research, technology and the Arts. There are residential developments on other parts of the master plan, catering for a wide variety of needs, including graduates looking to settle in the city. The aim is to grow a very mixed community, with professionals, students, start-up businesses and tech companies. A lot of universities are working in partnership with other businesses, so what we’re now seeing in Eastside Locks is real vibrancy in a learning quarter.
The pieces of the jigsaw then come together, begin to take shape and the area creates its own unique role within the city’s DNA, rather than becoming a student ghetto; all about students and nothing else. The approach that we and Alumno embraced, was to create an environment that’s focused on community and social values. Not only should the development achieve the brief in terms of creating high quality student housing, that actually raises the bar and shows what’s possible, but also becomes part of a gateway landmark development when HS2 arrives. There are a lot of housing providers out there that develop a very strong brand, but that brand can be a bit of a one size fits all, rather than really considering what’s best in a specific context.
The opportunity here was to create a canalside environment with an animated ground floor that addressed the canal frontage and managed the harsher environment along the very busy ‘Middleway’ dual carriageway. It was also to become a local marker not only for Birmingham City University as a campus but also for the Eastside Locks regeneration and so a catalyst for the quality of development that will be coming forward. Very early on with Alumno, we established some of these very important principles.
This development has really encouraged the canalside to flourish. On arrival you’ve got this attractive setting which is peaceful, safe, secure and welcoming. There were parts of that canal where people would previously not have felt at all safe or comfortable. The regeneration opens up this asset more as
an amenity and another form of network across the city. The canalsides have reinvented themselves as a very healthy amenity where a lot of people walk, cycle, and jog, while barges gently come and go. Canals, public parks and open spaces form part of a green infrastructure that our high density, growing cities need to survive, so we want to reinstate and create these. Birmingham has got more miles of canal than Venice but far too little is being utilised, so creating these canalside destinations and joining them together becomes an- other layer of connectivity. It’s a great infrastructure within the city that should continue to be embraced and enjoyed.
As far as the buildings were concerned, the principles we shared with Alum- no allowed us to work together in harmony. We consistently took environ- mental considerations into account. For example, we wanted to make sure that all the living spaces were at the ends of wings so they could benefit from a dual or triple aspect. Even if a bedroom suite was on the side of the building that only had a single outlook towards the Middleway, that student could still enjoy a view of the canalside from their living/ dining area which has dual aspect. These are simple principles that we agreed and developed in a dialogue with Alumno.
We also looked together at developing the facade design as a response to the environmental strategy. We developed a fabric first approach, creating a very deep model facade, ensuring that the orientation of the building maximised East/West aspects for many of the rooms. We tried to make sure that each of the clusters had dual and triple aspect living spaces, so they could really enjoy a panoramic view, bringing as much natural light as possible into the communal areas, whilst respecting privacy of the bedrooms. Alongside the use of robust materials this reduces the cost of heating and ventilation, with significant environmental benefits.
Modern, and very carefully planned, methods of construction were utilised. The floor, the walls and the facade are all precast concrete units which came to site having been fabricated in factory conditions so the quality control and snagging was all done in the factory. They were brought on site as complete modules, with the glazing pre-fitted, and then fixed together. We intentionally used the concrete structure to do a number of things: hold the building up, provide a thermal mass to the building (so we could efficiently regulate the temperatures) but also to be the finished surface for a proportion of the internal decoration (as it can be painted) rather than covering everything in vast amounts of plasterboard. So we got one material to do three things.
That is the added value of taking a holistic approach where you make structure, services and architectural design work together. This was something
Alumno fully embraced. It was different from building a lightweight metal frame solution, for example, but the benefit of doing this was beyond just the capital cost of the facade. There was also honesty in the materials in terms of its context. Some of the remaining traditional structures, including the canalsides themselves, are brick with stone detailing. We therefore de- cided on a dark brick base, which could also deal with the harsher, slightly more polluted environment, from the Middleway, but have a light colour- ed precast masonry building sitting above it. We believe the architectural language delivers a timeless design with an aesthetic quality that is both functional and responsive.
We explored a number of materials and textures, concurrently with the planning, the design and layout of the building. The principle was to develop a very simple composition of forms, slightly faceted to follow the canal. The canal has this very gentle crescent and we wanted to reflect that in the plan of the building.
Instead of creating a curved building (which would have all sorts of complica- tions in terms of wedge-shaped rooms, etc.) we developed this composition of six rectangular forms that sat in a faceted arrangement creating a gentle curve. In the gap between these heavy precast buildings were glazed slots and they then accommodated the change in angle. That faceted plan was gentle enough to be a curving crescent. When looking at materials, we believed a precast reconstituted stone finish and a dark brick base paid homage to local traditional materials.
The scale of the building also shields the environment and creates a tranquil edge to the canalside. When you’re walking along the canal within the Eastside Locks it feels calm. That was very important. We’ve seen a lot of large scale buildings trying too hard to be complex. We wanted to keep the palette of materials simple, functional and robust, with the design timeless, understated and confident, so it aged gracefully and created that sense of permanence. This building is here for a long time.
In terms of the longevity and adaptability of this building, it also has both present and future possibilities for different usages, such as accommodating visiting tutors or academics. It can provide conference accommodation, so has a summertime use as well as term time. At the street level there are a number of incubation workspaces for graduates and a retail unit open to the local community as well as students.
To sustain the flexibility of residential uses if requirements alter over the decades, the building is arranged with three cores; therefore it can be di-
Birmingham University Locks
vided so parts of it could be for hotel and conferencing, while others could be student housing. Future proofing and being smarter with building design is what delivers a sustainable city. If we’re building things to knock them down in 10-15 years time to start again, that’s certainly not a responsible or sustainable approach.
Placemaking, communal courtyards and the public realm was also considered holistically; so it was very important we understood what was private, what was public and what was shared. So keeping the new canal road as part of the public thoroughfare and connecting the streets along the canalside was important.
We designed elevated courtyards on the first floor that had great views over the canalside, and the level change meant that they retained privacy and security as communal spaces for the students.
A project on such a large scale has a huge range of complex issues to ad- dress. Utilising a pre-fabricated approach embracing modern methods of construction demanded significant development of the design and stringent quality control early on in the process.
We’re designing a building with a very clear vision from the outset and understanding of how it would be put together on site. This was all very much something which we closely worked on with Alumno, the design team and the contractor.
It was also vital that the facade contractor, for example, really understood the design details and technical parameters to help us achieve the details/ joints. I’m a great believer that in our construction industry it is not about just delivering a project, because every project will encounter its challenges and problems. The strength of a relationship, and what will test our endurance on the project, is how we manage these problems. There have been some steep learning curves and lessons learnt to deliver this ambitious scheme, yet we’ve managed to remain colleagues and friends, which shows a huge amount of trust with each other. That’s what a partnership should be.
Going into higher education is the first step for many young people; engaging with others beyond their school friends and families. It is more than just creating rooms for people to sleep in, with sharing spaces and amenities. There’s a bigger picture of how do we create an environment that brings the best out in our next generation.
One of the basic principles that we consider when we approach university housing projects is to regard them as bringing a community together. Within
the community of the building, the clusters behave similar to a family structure and subsequently the bedrooms are private spaces for the individuals in the family. This hierarchy of spaces helps us to develop a simple diagram for the organisation of the design.
The synergy between life skills and being in student housing need to be quite joined up because it’s about developing social skills. If you walk into student housing you have people from a hugely diverse range of backgrounds; so how do we bring everyone together while respecting their individual needs and privacy? Everyone needs their private space and specific needs, but at the same time a respect for others.
If we can offer students a valuable experience it’s something they can take into the rest of their lives. My university experience was the most important part of my life, where I really grew. Even now, in my forties, talking to friends and colleagues we remember what we learned from our experiences at university, the great fun we had and what great cities we were in. These memories remain with us for the rest of our lives. A lot of talented students stay on in a city, meet partners, develop their careers, and settle down. We’ve been successful where we can help retain that talent within a great city like Birmingham.
Glenn Howells Architects has been an enduring presence in British architecture since its inception in 1990. The practice has grown into a design studio with national and international reach.
Underpinning our practice is an approach rooted in the constant exploration of how the built environment can improve the lives of individuals and communities.
Glenn Howells Architects projects have won a diverse range of awards including the RIBA, the British Council for Offices, Housing Design, RICS, Civic Trust, Concrete Society and Brick Awards. The Savill Building was shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2007.
Currently, the practice employs over 120 people across its studios in Birmingham and London and works throughout the UK in sectors including residential, masterplanning, office, culture, education, retail, health and leisure.
Birmingham University Locks
Customer Service Assistant I’m the first person the students see when they walk through the door in the morning. Every day is different but they’re all little rays of sunshine in their own way. Some of them have their troubles and that takes a little bit more experience. We try to make their environment as comfortable and safe as possible. Many are far away from home, and many have never left home before. If they feel comfortable as soon as they walk through the front door, they’re not only going to grow as people, but hopefully achieve what they want to achieve while they’re in higher education.
The university ensures that many of the students are introduced to each other before they move in. They start online flat chats and things like that, so when they move here they have a little insight into each other. The allocation also depends on what they’ve requested. The university takes on board exactly what the student is looking for, so you’ll have flats that are purely the same course and mixed flats that are all studying different things, but they seem to click really well. The students can put forward their requests from day one, as soon as they’re applying to BCU. That’s something that I feel the allocation team definitely get right here, as we have very little movement (students applying for a transfer to another flat once they’re here) which I’ve
noticed on other sites. I think that’s down to matching students on best prospects. Students will come with a list of what their interests are, what they’re studying, what age they are, where they’re from, all of that and the allocation team think about who they are likely to be comfortable with, but still try for an interesting mix. We’ve got a lot of diversity here. China to Japan, India, Ameri- ca and then European students and local type students as well.
I also get involved with the gardens. I get the lucky job of dead heading the flowers. Sometimes things don’t always fall into the job description, but the building is as much of the job as the students and I like it to be as nice. I must admit it was a proud moment, putting that last pot in and looking back. I’m a local girl, from Yardley, seven miles up the road. We get parents and students here for viewing weekends, they generally tend to ask where are the best places to eat, how far are the shops and that sort of thing. So I can give them an insight on the bit of Birmingham that I know and Tracy, the lovely woman that I work with, she’s from the other side of Birmingham. So we’ve got a little bit of diversity as far as which parts that we know and which parts we don’t.
Because I’m a Brummie, I’ve seen big changes in this area. I remember this when it was just old warehouses, weeds everywhere, old tarmac. I’d happily go and sit and eat my lunch down at this section of the canal. So the new campus has actually completely transformed something that was a kind of no go area before. You didn’t even want to walk down this far, but it’s like a nice part of the city now. So I feel that this kind development is really helping Birmingham as a whole. It’s now like you’re waiting for the next part to be opened, the next little gem to be added. I can bring my children here and walk down the canal. Eventually this bit will connect to Gas Street. Across the road here, is the oldest train station in Britain and it’s going to be retained as an HS2 station. I’m really proud of that.
Birmingham University Locks
Birmingham University Locks
Applied Performance StudentI’m from a small town in Lancashire. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever go to Uni, but I came to the Con- servatoire open day and fell in love with the course. It’s not straight forward acting and al- lows us to tailor it to our needs. I can use placements in the second year to explore options like teaching, or starting our own company, as well as performing. One area that interests me is how drama can be used to help young of- fenders with speech and confidence building.
I looked around the accommodation options and chose University Locks. I just thought it was the nicest one. It clicked for me the moment I walked into the foyer. It looked beautiful and just felt good. Like a hotel, but one I could be at home in. When I went to look at the flat and saw the nice shared kitchen, living room with big windows and good views I thought ‘Yeah, I like that.’ The cost was pretty much the same as the other options and actually seemed cheaper than living in a private house or flat, when you consider all the things that are included in the price; plus we’ve got the security, which is a bonus for me. I was nervous coming from a small place, a village near Preston, to a big city like Birmingham, but I almost feel more secure here than at home. The staff are all so great. I love the security guards at night, you can go have a chat with them.
My flat is a mixed flat, with three guys and four girls, including one girl from my class. The funniest thing is that she was actually brought up really close to me, but we’d never met before. We moved in on same day and were together for 3 days straight, so became really good friends. My other flatmates study a variety of things; Criminology, English, Music Technology, Theatre Design. I like my room. I get peace and privacy when I need it and I love my ensuite. At first my flatmates and I didn’t all click, but one of us brought in a Wii and we played tennis and stuff. I brought in Mario Kart. We soon started having nights out and already feel like a family now we’re into our second month. The whole flat is already planning Christmas.
It’s great to have the common rooms as well, where you can hang out and meet people from the whole accommodation. There are different sizes and types of flats, some only sharing with one other person. Quite a few people who live here have disabilities and the facilities cater for them well. It’s really nice to meet and mix with variety of people, but still have your own space when you want.
Gemmology and Jewel Studies Student
Birmingham City University
It’s actually quite an unusual journey that took me here. I went into an office straight from school. Then I did an apprenticeship as an office clerk and worked there for about seven years. I did statistics, but it got a little bit boring. I became determined to try and do the thing that really interests me. This was the turning point.
When I was a child I liked collecting minerals, but developed more and more of a fascination with cut stones, for jewellery, especially the ones with all the different colours. I’m not as big a fan of colourless diamonds, but the diamonds that are coloured gemstones, they really give me something. I feel really good when I see them and the closer I study them, the better I feel.
I took the German Gemmological exams and also the European ones. The Gemmological Association is about gem stones; the clarity, the cut, the carat and the weight of gem stones as well as the colour. This is a very old science. An art. When I got my initial certificates, I found out that they had just started an excellent new course in Birmingham, where I could advance further. I decided to apply and was accepted. So far I’m really enjoying the course.
I researched various accommodation options for my time in Birmingham and decided University Locks was the best quality and value. It’s no more expensive than the other options, but much better. I immediately liked it when I came to look round. Many other students thought the same, so when I tried to apply, it was a bit difficult, but I just managed to get the last place, which was a big relief.
I’m twenty eight, so bit older than average and have a flat with just one other student. He is studying Silversmithing. They tried to put us together because we are doing something similar. We both have the school in the Jewellery Quarter, so can walk there together, which is perfect. Thankfully, he’s a very nice guy, we get on well together and I feel really comfortable. The flat is nice, with our own bedrooms and en-suites. There’s a shared area with cooking facilities but I have to improve my cooking skills a little bit, before I let anyone else taste it! It’s the right size for me, I can concentrate
Birmingham University Locks
on one or two people but if I have to communicate with bigger groups, it can be a struggle.
I have Asperger Syndrome. It’s on the autistic spectrum. I actually think autistic spectrum is very misunderstood. If you search for information about Asperger’s and relationships for example, it isn’t that positive, it’s rather negative, and people – if they read that – they maybe misunderstand.
Sometimes people with Asperger’s learn social behaviour in a slightly different way, because it doesn’t come as naturally. I see how other people act and try to interpret it. I try to learn the codes and join in, but it’s not always easy and can be tiring. I speak to other people with Asperger’s and we compare notes. We need to also feel that there’s something positive about us. I should accept my own strengths. For example, I can concentrate easily on subjects that interest me and develop knowledge and expertise.
I like University Locks, I’m getting to know it. I always start by soaking up the atmosphere of a place. I like the foyer and the common areas, the pictures, the sofa and view out to the canal. Today I walked around the city centre and I went into a restaurant and I ate a pizza and drank a wine, and I just enjoyed it like this. All this is soothing to me. The accommodation staff are good and very kind. They always seem happy to talk to me, so even though I’m aware that I’ve got some issues and don’t feel as natural as I would like to, I still find the atmosphere more friendly and pleasant than any similar environment I’ve known. Sometimes I go downstairs in the evening, to speak with the security and watch all the students coming in and going out to have fun. It helps me to have fun somehow, when I don’t need or want to go out. It’s a very mixed group here, so it’s interesting for me to see all the different types from different countries and backgrounds. Where I’m from in Switzerland, things are less mixed, but here, the inhabitants are more international. I find that an interesting and positive thing.
But when I do leave, I hope I have this sense that I’ve almost experienced more of the world through being in this building, and through wandering about, being in Birmingham and taking trips to London and beyond.
Drama Student
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire BA
I was at a theatre school in Chicago, but the first semester of the course wasn’t really working out and I didn’t like where I was living. I had a friend who had actually come all the way from the UK to be on the Chicago course and he wasn’t happy either, so planned to audition for a good place back in the UK. This prompted me to try as well and was fortunate enough to get into the Birmingham Conservatoire.
Even though the second semester in Chicago got better, I thought, three years in another country could be a great experience. Also I think UK actors are generally better trained than American actors. There are some very highly regarded schools here.
I’ve already got a background in acting. At twenty four, I’m comparatively older, but I think it can be an advantage to be a bit older as an arts student. Even in Chicago the older students were the ones I got along with most and the ones that generally I thought were better.
Before I came here I didn’t know much about Birmingham, so it was a kind of a leap of faith, but I’m very happy with how things have worked out, with the course, the city and the accommodation.
We’d been emailed about a bunch of different accommodation options, but University Locks seemed to be the newest and most desirable place to get into. I knew that early on, as I was in an online group chat with my class before I actually met them and many mentioned they all were trying to get into University Locks, so I’m like, “Oh I guess I might as well try.” I did and feel quite lucky, as I know people who didn’t manage to.
I’m in a two person flat with a Law student and he’s super cool. The location really works out. It’s only a five or ten minute walk to the Conservatoire and close to pretty much everything you’ll ever need. Perfect really. I think that this kind of helps me, having not to really worry too much about things; well apart from my laundry rearing its ugly head now and then. This allows me just to completely focus on what I’m doing and what I came here for. None of
on one or two people but if I have to communicate with bigger groups, it can be a struggle.
I have Asperger Syndrome. It’s on the autistic spectrum. I actually think autistic spectrum is very misunderstood. If you search for information about Asperger’s and relationships for example, it isn’t that positive, it’s rather negative, and people – if they read that – they maybe misunderstand.
Sometimes people with Asperger’s learn social behaviour in a slightly different way, because it doesn’t come as naturally. I see how other people act and try to interpret it. I try to learn the codes and join in, but it’s not always easy and can be tiring. I speak to other people with Asperger’s and we compare notes. We need to also feel that there’s something positive about us. I should accept my own strengths. For example, I can concentrate easily on subjects that interest me and develop knowledge and expertise.
I like University Locks, I’m getting to know it. I always start by soaking up the atmosphere of a place. I like the foyer and the common areas, the pictures, the sofa and view out to the canal. Today I walked around the city centre and I went into a restaurant and I ate a pizza and drank a wine, and I just enjoyed it like this. All this is soothing to me. The accommodation staff are good and very kind. They always seem happy to talk to me, so even though I’m aware that I’ve got some issues and don’t feel as natural as I would like to, I still find the atmosphere more friendly and pleasant than any similar environment I’ve known. Sometimes I go downstairs in the evening, to speak with the security and watch all the students coming in and going out to have fun. It helps me to have fun somehow, when I don’t need or want to go out. It’s a very mixed group here, so it’s interesting for me to see all the different types from different countries and backgrounds. Where I’m from in Switzerland, things are less mixed, but here, the inhabitants are more international. I find that an interesting and positive thing.
But when I do leave, I hope I have this sense that I’ve almost experienced more of the world through being in this building, and through wandering about, being in Birmingham and taking trips to London and beyond.
Birmingham University Locks
Product Design StudentI chose Birmingham, partly because I wanted to experience living away from home and also be- cause this is one of the only universities that did the course I wanted to do. So I was like, well why not?! It’s quite a specialist course, within product design, 3D designer maker. There’s a lot to do with 3D printing and the computer software associated with that. I find it very interesting and enjoy the challenges it throws up. I’ve always been interested in both arts and science.
I’m not exactly sure what I’ll do after I graduate, but with the product design I’d very much like to to go on and make exoskeletons or prosthetics; some- thing along these lines. I would like to use my situation, education and experience to help others. At this stage, however, I’m not really sure how things will go, so I just kind of go with the flow and will see what happens.
Things are progressing really well at the moment. I like the way the course is structured. For example, at the moment we are given briefs, but they’re really open, so we can develop what we want as long as we relate it back to the brief. With my interest in prosthetics I’m already trying to move things in that direction within the course. I’m going into inclusive design, designing things for everybody, that everybody can use, and then you just kind of progress from there.
I’ve really grown to love Birmingham. I’m from a little village in Northern Ireland and this is a big city, so it’s quite a change. The accommodation is in the vicinity of the city centre, so everything is nearby, with easy access, which is really convenient and great for exploring. I think the thing I most like about Birmingham is that the people are really nice. Everyone I meet seems really friendly.
A lot of the university staff are really helpful, because of me being in a wheel- chair they are like, “Do you need anything?” – they are always making sure I have enough room and that, they are great that way.
I’m enjoying being here at University Locks. The general atmosphere is re- ally good. Our flat is a disabled flat and it’s huge. We’ve got a double kitchen
so we have a standard height one and a lower down hob and everything. You get like a little family. We have a TV in our flat, and so everyone comes in after lunch and chills out. The place as a whole is well designed and very inclusive, with good security. The reception and security staff are lovely. Re- ally friendly and helpful, so we feel safe, welcomed and well provided for. I very much want to stay here, so hopefully I’ll be able to keep my room till I finish my degree
Birmingham University Locks
Birmingham University Locks
