Botany Bay Mill, Chorley

DMWR was appointed by RG Group post-planning to develop and provide full construction information for a significant student accommodation project in Portsmouth city centre.

The challenge was to design a 12-storey, 485-bedroom student accommodation block adjacent to Portsmouth and Southsea station, ensuring the integration of the new building with an existing operational student accommodation block, Margaret Rule Hall. The task also involved ensuring that communal and commercial spaces were well designed and connected to the surrounding infrastructure.

Client

UNITE Students & RG Group

Sector
Value

£21 million

Scale

485 Beds spread over 12 floors in 2 blocks with a connecting ground floor level.

Services
  • RIBA 3-6
  • Design Development
  • Planning Submissions
  • Production Drawings
  • BIM Services / Model Controller

What DMWR did

DMWR developed the design for the 12-storey student accommodation block, which consisted of 485 student bedrooms distributed across 12 floors. The design included reception areas, common and study rooms and commercial units at ground level. A key element of the design was ensuring that the building met the needs of modern student living while fitting seamlessly into the city centre context.

Integration with existing buildings was one of the main challenges which required integrating the new student block with the adjacent and operational Margaret Rule Hall. This required complex phasing and careful detailing to ensure that the interfaces between the two buildings were smooth and did not disrupt the ongoing operation of the existing accommodation.

The approach to creating shared amenities was a crucial part of the original brief. The ground floor was designed to house shared amenity spaces for both the new student accommodation and the existing Margaret Rule Hall. This design provided a significant improvement and modernisation of the facilities for the existing accommodation whilst contributing to the creation of an engaging environment for all students.
DMWR developed and coordinated the design and construction package using BIM, ensuring precision, efficiency, and seamless integration of all building components throughout the design process. The utilisation of this software particularly suited a project such as this which required precise detailing around interfaces with existing buildings.

The Outcome

The project delivered 485 high-quality student bedrooms across 12 storeys, providing modern living spaces and communal areas that meet the needs of contemporary students.

The integration of the new building with the existing Margaret Rule Hall was carefully managed, ensuring both buildings work together without disrupting their operations. The shared ground-floor amenity spaces enhances the living experience for all students, modernising the facilities for students of new and existing blocks. By using BIM, DMWR ensured that the design and construction process was carried out with precision and efficiency, making the project a successful addition to Portsmouth’s student accommodation offering.

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