HawkinsBrown complete timber pool facility for 'swimming among the trees'
– Adam Cossey, Partner at Hawkins\Brown
Architects HawkinsBrown have completed an elegant timber pool hidden among the trees for a school in the English county of Surrey.
Swimmers using the 25m, six-lane competition pool can view the surrounding woodland through a series of windows integrated into the building’s timber frame.
The architects used off-site fabrication methods to create the facility for Freemen’s School in the village of Ashtead, which replaces a previous pool building destroyed by a fire in 2014.
“The space is a welcoming retreat that engages with the mature woodland setting through the use of natural materials and colour schemes,” said HawkinsBrown partner Adam Cossey.
“The deep columns of the all-timber construction and wrap-around glazing afford direct views from the water into the woodland, giving the sense of swimming amongst the trees.”
Fit out contractor Gilbert-Ash worked on the project, forming the building’s glue-laminated timber (glulam) portal frame, which is braced with cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels. According to the design team, the choice of the material was made in response to the need for a fast, efficient, carbon-neutral method of construction and a building that is resilient, insulates and is resistant to corrosion.
To minimise its impact on the school’s Grade II-listed landscape, the lower ground floor is partially submerged, moulding the structure into the surrounding scenery. The highest point of the gently pitched roof identifies the main entrance.
Inside, the natural internal surface of the roof and walls are left exposed and stained white, acting as “a complementary feature to the external setting that helps to create a special environment to swim in".
The frame, walls and roof were completed in just over three weeks, with the interior pool, changing facilities and multi-purpose teaching and events space following. The entire project – built in collaboration with structural engineer Eckersley O’Callaghan, landscape designer BD Landscape and arboriculturalist TreeLine – was delivered in one year.
The swimming pool marks the second phase of a four-stage campus masterplan by the City of London, which HawkinsBrown is delivering for the school.
Completed in 2014, the first phase saw the delivery of a new music school and a boarding house for 60 pupils. Future plans include the refurbishment of the Grade II* Listed Main House, a new playground and enhancements to the landscaping of the school grounds.
A number of developers have started to see the potential of swimming pools situated in woodland sites. Projects in the pipeline include a green-roofed aquatic centre surrounded by trees on the west coast of France, designed by architects Agence Search, and a swimming and leisure facility in a tree-filled park in Derby, UK, designed by FaulknerBrowns.
Hawkins/Brown timber construction swimming pool Freemen's School Surrey architecture design Adam CosseyFaulknerBrowns reveal modular stacked design for Derby swimming complex
3XN win architecture competition to design wave-inspired lakeside aquatics centre
Design innovations in the spotlight at International Swimming Pool & Leisure Centre Conference
Architects Agence Search win contract for aquatic centre in French forest
Farrells win NEC Award for delivery of futuristic Hong Kong swimming pool
Mikou Studio create feng shui swimming pool in France
UAE’s first Dior Spa debuts in Dubai at Dorchester Collection’s newest hotel, The Lana
Europe's premier Evian Spa unveiled at Hôtel Royal in France
Clinique La Prairie unveils health resort in China after two-year project
GoCo Health Innovation City in Sweden plans to lead the world in delivering wellness and new science
Four Seasons announces luxury wellness resort and residences at Amaala
Aman sister brand Janu debuts in Tokyo with four-floor urban wellness retreat
€38m geothermal spa and leisure centre to revitalise Croatian city of Bjelovar
Two Santani eco-friendly wellness resorts coming to Oman, partnered with Omran Group
Kerzner shows confidence in its Siro wellness hotel concept, revealing plans to open 100
Ritz-Carlton, Portland unveils skyline spa inspired by unfolding petals of a rose
Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners are just one of the names behind The Emory hotel London and Surrenne private members club
Peninsula Hot Springs unveils AUS$11.7m sister site in Australian outback
IWBI creates WELL for residential programme to inspire healthy living environments
Conrad Orlando unveils water-inspired spa oasis amid billion-dollar Evermore Resort complex
Studio A+ realises striking urban hot springs retreat in China's Shanxi Province
Populous reveals plans for major e-sports arena in Saudi Arabia
Wake The Tiger launches new 1,000sq m expansion
Othership CEO envisions its urban bathhouses in every city in North America
Merlin teams up with Hasbro and Lego to create Peppa Pig experiences
SHA Wellness unveils highly-anticipated Mexico outpost
One&Only One Za’abeel opens in Dubai featuring striking design by Nikken Sekkei
Luxury spa hotel, Calcot Manor, creates new Grain Store health club
'World's largest' indoor ski centre by 10 Design slated to open in 2025
Murrayshall Country Estate awarded planning permission for multi-million-pound spa and leisure centre
Aman's Janu hotel by Pelli Clarke & Partners will have 4,000sq m of wellness space
Therme Group confirms Incheon Golden Harbor location for South Korean wellbeing resort
Universal Studios eyes the UK for first European resort
King of Bhutan unveils masterplan for Mindfulness City, designed by BIG, Arup and Cistri
Rural locations are the next frontier for expansion for the health club sector
Tonik Associates designs new suburban model for high-end Third Space health and wellness club
BrunelloCucinelli has madehisfortune from cashmere and has used hiswealthto restoreandrevive theItalian hamlet he callshome. Wefindout more