Ovingdean Hall College

The main house (Ovingdean Hall), built in 1792 when the 350 acre plot of land was acquired by Nathanial Kemp is Grade 2 listed along with a collection of curtilage listed buildings on the site of varying quality and style.

Following a period of use as an educational site, Ovingdean Hall International Language College commissioned the practice to design and deliver a number of accommodation blocks to provide on-site living for students.

The proposals encompass two new blocks with a total of 78 single occupancy, en-suite student bedrooms arranged around central corridors which act as dividers to the massing of the accommodation wings, in clearly identifiable structures leading to communal accommodation. The orientation maximises long views towards the South Downs as well as connections to the central landcaped areas. Externally the buildings read as linear masses relating to the orientation and grain of the existing building with principle facades of the proposed buildings taking their cue from the mathematical tiles of Ovingdean Hall as well as responding to the proportion, colour and tonal qualities of the flint and lime mortar walls prevalent in the local village buildings and boundary walls. The matt black metal mono pitched roofs mimick the slated roofscape of the surrounding village and the western end, external cladding being a pixelated abstraction of existing neighbouring village buildings covered in ivy.

The proposals also incorporate a number of innovative construction methods and sustainability measures with the project achieving a BREEAM Excellent rating. This, together with modular en suite shower room pods, fabricated off site led to a reduction in the contract period and eliminating future defects and maintenance issues.