24 August 2018 · By AJ Contributor

A backland site in central London is the site for an initiative to transform children’s lives through learning experiences outside the classroom. Photography by Peter Cook

Waterloo City Farm embodies Feilden Fowles’ values for education: that spaces for learning should be aspirational and uplifting; that they should inspire a sense of pride, value and ownership, enabling them to have an impact within the community. 

A backland site in central London provided an opportunity for collaboration between Feilden Fowles and two charities – Jamie’s Farm and Oasis Waterloo – to transform the lives of children through learning experiences outside the classroom. Despite economic constraints, the three organisations together raised funds to deliver a masterplan that has created London’s most central urban farm and a centre for the local community.

Owned by Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital and developed under a ‘meanwhile-use’ lease, all structures including the barn have been designed as prefabricated timber frames that can be disassembled easily and reconfigured in the future – acknowledging the impermanence of the site. The articulated truss structure of the barn creates a lofty and uplifting space for congregation. An insulated classroom has been inserted in the north-west corner, providing a quieter space for focused learning. 

Fergus Feilden, director, Feilden Fowles

Start on site May 2014 Completion February 2018 Gross internal floor area Farm: 1,630m2; barn: 290m2 Construction cost Barn: £143,000 Construction cost per m2 £493 Lighting consultant Re-Lit (a charitable branch of Michael Grubb Studio) Architect Feilden Fowles Structural engineer Structure Workshop Main contractor Timber Workshop Fit out contractor Mansel Land

The selected materials were chosen on the basis of being economical and typically found in agricultural settings. 

The truss form of the Douglas fir main barn frame gives character to the main space and is echoed in the form of the timber cladding of the barn’s main façade facing Carlisle Lane.

Translucent GRP was chosen to clad the long façades, allowing light to penetrate the space. Sliding galvanised steel barn doors open to reveal the central path that runs the length of the farm site. Galvanised steel is also used for the cladding of the classroom and its door. 

The insulated classroom is lined with birch-faced ply, selected for its economy and whitewashed to lift the finish. It provides space for shelving and pinned-up work. The classroom provides a more traditional learning environment but retains a simple, agricultural aesthetic in line with the whole site. One deep-set double-glazed unit, framed in steel angles, provides a view to the outside and a place to sit. 

Fergus Feilden, director, Feilden Fowles

Wcf barn classroom section and elevation copy

Barn classroom section and elevation

Wcf barn classroom entrance door copy

Larch timber frame Somerscales of Grimsby. Timber sourced from Hampshire, the Lake District and Scotland, Main barn

Cladding timber  Local supplier. Grown and milled in Devon 

Barn door  IAE Agriculture, Galvanised steel frame and galvanised steel sheet cladding www.iae.co.uk 

Main barn cladding CladCo Profiles, 14/3 Corrugated GRP www.cladco.co.uk 

Steel cladding Accord Steel Cladding, 0.5mm 14/3 corrugated galvanised steel, classroom www.steelroofsheets.co.uk

Classroom clerestory Varico, 25mm Multiwall Roofing Sheet, clear www.varicoltd.com

Main barn post footings Batavon, galvanised steel www.albat.co.uk 

Double-glazed unit Lead Designs. Toughened, 28mm classroom window www.leaddesigns.co.uk 

Insulation Celotex (donation), 100mm rigid insulation, classroom www.celotex.co.uk 

Window frames The Metal Store. 40 x 40 x 5mm galvanised steel angle, classroom window/door www.themetalstore.co.uk

Tags education Feilden Fowles Waterloo

What a beautiful barn conversion, now i have one confusion, picture: source peter cooke picture, is that the side of the barn or just another building?

we also do wooden framed buildings at https://buildingconstructor.co.uk

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