Kings Road ChurchBerkhamsted, Hertfordshire
The proposal is for the demolition of an existing two-story
church building and the construction of a new purpose-built church facility
that will integrate a ground-floor café, meeting facilities, and a first-floor
auditorium capable of accommodating up to 240 individuals. The project addresses
the pressing need for a new spiritual home for the Kings Road Church
congregation, who currently convene at a local school. It also aspires to
serve as a dynamic community catalyst for the wider Berkhamsted community.
The project vision is a commitment to establish a long-term centre
of community excellence where the people of Berkhamsted can join in small and
medium sized gatherings at the heart of their town. This commitment to communal
celebration is at the core of the proposal and underscores a dedication to the people
that the Kings Road Church community serve.
Reducing impact on the sensitive
conservation context as well as the immediate surrounding properties has been
at the forefront of the design development process. Providing a new auditorium
facility to seat 240 requires the inclusion of various ancillary functions that
increase net floor area. Integrating the resulting larger volume into this
sensitive site requires architectural innovation which in turn has driven the
final external building form. This form provides the maximum amount of usable
floor space within a minimum impact envelop
The protection of day lighting and sun lighting to all neighbouring
buildings has been a primary driver to finding the optimal external building
form. The daylighting analysis
resulted in a simple 3D volumetric
model within which designs could be constrained. The resulting model form
has a highly unusual geometry.
The proposed building form underwent multiple
iterations to match required net floor areas with minimising external profiles
and visual aesthetics within the street context. The final form is
the result of this lengthy process and provides a reduced volume relative to
the Sunlight & Daylight study. By stepping down the roof profiles we have
been able to better integrate the building form into the rising street context
as well as reduce the impact to immediate neighbouring dwellings.
In keeping with the church members desire to build a long-term, low
energy, sustainable and future-proof building the design will be constructed to Passivhaus
standards. Currently the Passivhaus Institute record only two such churches globally.
The new church will be a low impact urban
intervention and will contribute to the portfolio of such examples within the
Berkhamsted community helping to raise standards for future developments.
Project Name: Kings Road Church
Location: Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire
Gross Floor Area (House): 811 m2
Value: Confidential
Environmental Rating: Passivhaus
Project Period: March 2023-2026
Project Credits
Architect: Kirkland Fraser Moor Architects
Client: Kings Road Church
Planning Consultant: Trevor Standen
Heritage Consultant: Squire Heritage + Hurd Roland
Transport: Abington
Construction Consultant: PCP Surveyors
Acoustics: Nova Acoustics
Daylighting Consultant: Rights of Light
Arboriculture: Stileman
Ecology: MKEcology
Public Relations: Helen Kahn
Visualisation: Darc Studio + InTandem