comprise plastered walls, off-shutter concrete, and projecting brickwork elements, producing a dynamic façade that breaks down the overall scale of the building.
Vertical recessed panels aligned with window openings are painted in varying colours, providing rhythm and visual orientation across levels. Larger block panels on the east and west façades are plastered and finished in dark grey, a tone that is repeated at the lower two levels of the raised building, anchoring the structure visually to the ground. Vertical cores are expressed in off-shutter concrete and opened at the upper levels, revealing painted steel mesh balustrades that add texture and depth.
Internally, the fire stairs are colour-coded by level, with the walls, stair undersides, and concrete surfaces painted in distinct hues, supporting intuitive wayfinding and orientation. The mono-pitched, sheet-metal-clad roof follows the fall of the site, reinforcing the building’ s contextual response.
At ground level, the building encloses a landscaped courtyard within the parking level, with vegetation suited to the local environment softening the hard urban context. Feature walls within the parking area provide a curated canvas for street and graffiti artists, allowing artwork and murals to contribute to the building’ s identity and its engagement with its surroundings. separation reduces noise and enhances safety, while maximising land use on the constrained site.
The building is organised over eight storeys of accommodation, housing 860 students. The perimeter arrangement forms a continuous internal corridor that connects bedrooms, shared kitchens, study rooms, and ablution facilities. This layout encourages movement, passive surveillance, and everyday social interaction while also simplifying wayfinding.
Fire escape stairs are positioned strategically at corners and along the building’ s‘ legs’, ensuring
Organisation, Floors and Access Ravenscraig House’ s accommodation block is lifted above ground level, allowing parking, service spaces, and laundry facilities to be accommodated below the residential floors. This
Ravenscraig House 53