St Catharine's College, Cambridge

The Central Spaces project involved remodelling the College’s kitchens, dining hall, senior common room and ancillary basement areas. The dining hall was enlarged and its accessibility improved accessibility with a rationalised layout that resolved connections to the adjacent Grade I listed buildings.

Gort Scott Architects, supported by engineersHRW, won the project in an invited competition. The winning proposal was reliant on widening the hall by removing existing RC columns and beams supporting three storeys of student housing above. A phased series of structural works was developed that included threading a new steel structure through the existing building. An installation sequence of temporary supports and jacks was proposed by engineersHRW and further refined with the expert assistance of contractor SDC. A slender steel structure was incorporated into the new galleried walkway that spans across the hall, coordinated with a transfer arrangement to support loads from the accommodation above.

EngineersHRW are assisting the College with two other projects: a new build student housing scheme, and a phased refurbishment of their student accommodation dating from the mid-1500s to the 1960s.