Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Chair, TableWaltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Table, Windows, ChairWaltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - HandrailWaltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Image 5 of 19Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - More Images+ 14

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Shelving, Chair
© Alan Williams Photography

Text description provided by the architects. Phase 1

The £3 million project opens up the existing landmark 1930s building to create a new series of formal and informal education and meeting areas, which work as set of interacting horizontal and vertical layered spaces. The intervention of a suspended glazed seminar box within the central learning space, accessed by a slender oak-lined staircase, is the project’s most striking feature.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Stairs, Windows, Handrail
© Alan Williams Photography

Our team have transformed the previously austere and run-down main spaces in the college to create a welcoming, inclusive and contemporary environment for students, staff and other building users. This project marks the first phase in the delivery of a strategic masterplan. The success of the project has led to a further commission to carry out the second stage of the masterplan with a £4.9M project.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Windows, Stairs, Facade, Chair, Handrail
© Alan Williams Photography

Phase 2

This £4.9 million development, which marks the second phase of our work for Waltham Forest College in collaboration with Richard Hopkinson Architects, continues to upgrade routes and maximise the use of previously underused or redundant spaces.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Chair, Table
© Alan Williams Photography

Above the entrance lobby a new student zone offers a place for relaxation and extracurricular activities alongside a mezzanine floor dedicated to the Students Union.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Table, Chair
© Alan Williams Photography

On the ground floor, the large unused area beneath the main entrance steps has been refurbished to create a 70-seater lecture theatre and an innovative Market Place incorporating a butchery, a bakery, a reprographics and stationary centre and a start-up business incubator.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Handrail
© Alan Williams Photography

The 1970s Lowery Centre has been re-clad and the fashion department's workshops renovated to produce bright modern workspaces.

Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects - Windows, Brick, Facade
© Alan Williams Photography

The scheme also includes a Young Persons Learning Centre incorporating a workshop, a life skills classroom, a light craft room and flexible teaching space. The Centre will have direct access to a landscaped courtyard.

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Project location

Address:London, UK

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About this office
Cite: "Waltham Forest College / Platform 5 Architects + Richard Hopkinson Architects" 23 Jul 2014. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/528131/waltham-forest-college-platform-5-architects-richard-hopkinson-architects> ISSN 0719-8884

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