USS - University Square Stratford

AWW was appointed to complete the detailed design and to deliver this multifunction new build HE project for Birkbeck and the University of East London. The scheme provides specialist performing arts studios, music practice rooms and lecture theatres as well as a range of general purpose teaching and learning facilities and associated support accommodation.

University Square Stratford provided a unique opportunity for two institutions with complementary aims and aspirations to operate in a new manner and to deliver an ambitious programme of outreach and community participation. These new ways of operating required significant change in culture and operational procedure.

The design quality of the scheme and its bold palette of materials - exposed concrete, bronze alloy and black ceramic granite cladding - allowed the building to assume a distinct identity of its own which could belong to both institutions. The branding for the scheme was developed alongside AWW and reflects the design ethos of the project with crisp clean lines and intense colour contrasts.

On a tight urban site in East London, adjacent to a major traffic interchange, and requiring road closures and major drainage diversions, University Square Stratford was a particularly challenging project. Construction logistics were further constrained by the traffic and security restrictions imposed by the London Olympics. For both logistical and environmental reasons, pre-assembled plant was used extensively and all operatives had to use public transport.

University Square Stratford uses the central top lit atrium to help with internal wayfinding on a human scale. Each floor interacts with this volume in a different way, be that a viewing galley, bridge, balcony or window and its near constant visibility allows building users to quickly orientate themselves and determine their location.

A tranquil urban garden is set alongside the adjacent buildings. This refuge provides habitat opportunities for wildlife and a space for staff and students to relax.

University Square Stratford was awarded BREEAM Excellent. The 8,000 sqm building was constructed on a brownfield site bounded by roads on three sides. At the heart of the building is a vast internal atrium which floods the interior with light. Around its perimeter are a variety of spaces and rooms looking into the volume. These are equipped with adaptive lighting technology which responds to the quantity of natural borrowed light they receive from the space and which helps to lower energy costs.