Retrofit and Reuse in Reading
Spring Practice Day
7 May 2025
Last month, our team gathered at the University of Reading for an inspiring practice day centered on reuse and retrofit. The URS building — currently one of our exciting retrofit projects — provided the perfect backdrop for the day.
We kicked off with workshops from a couple of team members, exploring innovative examples of reuse and sustainable approaches. These sessions generated lively discussions about the delicate balance between preserving architectural heritage and meeting contemporary needs — precisely the challenge we’re navigating with the Grade II listed URS building.
Campus visit
Following a quick lunch, we suited up in hard hats and hi-vis vests for an immersive site tour. Walking through the URS building gave everyone valuable context for our renovation plans and allowed newer team members to connect drawings to reality. Seeing the distinctive architectural features we’ll be preserving alongside areas scheduled for transformation brought the project vividly to life.
Design challenge: ‘lose or reuse’
The afternoon culminated in a thought-provoking design challenge. Teams were given another campus building and a tight deadline — tasked either with developing retrofit solutions, or creating replacement designs.
Our teams presented some really innovative designs to the rest of the group, explaining how embodied carbon, heritage value, and long-term sustainability influenced their thought processes.
The day as a whole reinforced why thoughtful reuse of existing structures is increasingly central to our design philosophy. We’re excited to apply these fresh insights as our University of Reading project progresses, and look forward to sharing more updates in the coming months.