Gaps between buildings allow views into the quad layout while maintaining student privacy
RIBA National Award winner 2021
RIBA South Award winner 2021
Allies and Morrison for Wadham College, University of Oxford
Contract value: undisclosed
GIA: 5,432m2
The architectural language of this new student accommodation replicates the nearby traditional villas, but with a contemporary update. The blocks are arranged around a private landscaped garden, where students can relax. On the busy Iffley Road, the main building maintains the height and grandeur of its neighbours, while those on the side streets step down to respect the scale of the cottage terraces typical of the area. This method of integrating the new scheme into the context is also evident in the retained rear access lane across the back of the site. This provides space for new communal facilities building and cycle stores.
Internally, the layout groups bedrooms sharing kitchen, dining and lounge facilities. Attention has been given to corridor ends, having windows and seating for informal use. Internal staircases incorporate different wall and floor finishes to help bring natural daylight from above down into the lower floors. On the adjacent side street, the scheme also maintains the business use of a former workshop site, which has been redeveloped as live/work units or separate commercial units.
See the rest of the South winners here
And all the RIBA Regional Awards here
See other RIBA National Awards 2021 winners, Education, here