MEET THE TEAM

Hi! We are group 30 – Botanical Blueprint!
The team is made up of six MArch.1 students at Manchester School of Architecture.

Hannah O’Neill - LULU
BA(Hons) University of Kent
Part 1 at jmarchitects

Celia Brearley – LULU
MA University of Edinburgh
Part 1 at Mass Architecture, York / The Harris Partnership, Wakefield

Sophie Chappel – LULU
BA University of Huddersfield
Part 1 at Den Architecture, Leeds

Alex Williams – LULU
BA Birmingham City University
Part 1 at Glenn Howells Architects, London

Irena Renata Dewi – LULU
BEng in Architecture Parahyangan Catholic University
Part I at AECOM Indonesia

Claire Ainsworth – LULU
BArch Liverpool John Moore’s University
Part I at AFL Architects, Birmingham

MEET THE COLLABORATOR: THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER

Working closely with Professor Giles Johnson, a senior lecturer based in the Ecology and Evolution research group in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, we hope to produce plans to transform the Manchester of University’s Botanical Garden’s.

The University would like to open the Firs Botanical Gardens, primarily used by the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, to the public to encourage community participation in education and research. Research in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences aims to provide a deep and integrated understanding of our planet, including the physical environment, the organisms living there and how human activities impact on both. The University of Manchester promote public engagement through sharing ideas and research; inspiring discussion, debating and creativity; and involving the public with their work.

PRECEDENT STUDY: HULME COMMUNITY GARDEN CENTRE

Hulme Community Garden Centre is a unique community-led inner-city horticultural project. Their mission is to bring the community together through gardening. Designed by urbanism environmental design firm URBED, HCGC is a fully stocked nursery that also offers a volunteer, education and training hub working with socially excluded people across Greater Manchester.

HCGC provide support, education and training for people who, for whatever reason, have been marginalised by society. They work with schools, colleges, businesses and partner other voluntary organisations and community groups encouraging people to grow their own food, green their own communities and lead active and healthier lifestyles.

THE PROGRAMME

After sitting down with our collaborator, we devised a programme for the project. This programme includes elements that are necessary for a successful transformation of the botanical gardens.

The programme includes:
- A new temperature controlled greenhouse to be built in the same place as the existing
- A new education centre to host visitors and members of local schools
- The existing staff building to be renovated to include a mess room and office big enough for 3 people
- Lockable storage space where gardening equipment will be housed
- A new and smaller boiler house
- The removal of the existing large garages
- The existing dark and damp greenhouse to be renovated
- A connecting route from the botanical gardens to the adjacent Chancellor's Hotel with spaces to use for functions/weddings
- A new pond
- A new woodland walk with shade loving plants
- A variety of different planting beds