Stationers' Hall
Stationers’ Hall
Stationers’ Hall is a Grade I Listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument close to St Paul’s Cathedral. The site has likely been in occupation since the 1st Century AD and the western boundary of the site was built on top of the Roman wall to the City. The Hall has been on the site since the 1400s, and the buildings which occupy the site today were constructed over a period of time from the 16th Century to the present day. The Hall suffered damage during the Second World War and during the 1950s and was extensively repaired and rebuilt.
The existing link building between the Court Room and Great Hall dated from the 1950s and did not provide adequate vertical circulation between the various historic wings of the Hall which are at different levels.
As part of the Hall’s ‘Vision 350’ project, we were appointed by The Stationers’ Hall to work alongside Peregrine Bryant Architects as both structural engineers and heritage consultants. As engineers, we developed proposals to replace the link building and provide a new stairwell, lift, toilet facilities and a meeting room. Our heritage team provided conservation advice on these proposals.
As engineers, the new, contemporary staircase was designed in collaboration with Canal Engineering and was softened with timber treads and handrails to match the timberwork throughout the rest of the building. The installation of the new air-cooling system was integrated within custom oak FCU covers that complement the existing historic panelling and window arrangement but also conceals an array of modern services such as plugs, FCUs, speakers etc. Each of these units was precisely surveyed by the joinery subcontractors and individually tweaked to work with the eccentricities of the existing panelling.
As heritage consultants, the work uncovered historic remains following the demolition of the old link building. Stationers’ Hall has taken various forms over the last 500 years discoveries included Tudor door thresholds, medieval tiles, Georgian foundations and 1950s concrete. Many of the old paving stones and bricks that have been unearthed have evidence of charring believed to be from when the Hall was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. We worked closely with the City of London, Historic England and the UCL’s archaeology department and advised that the extent of the historic fabric is far more significant than previously imagined. Consequently, updated foundation designs have been produced by the design team to respond to the situation.
The finished building includes new heating and cooling systems that ensure user comfort year-round whilst reducing energy consumption by approximately 80%. Also, the less-abled can now access much more of the building and the circulation has been rationalised to enable multiple events to be held concurrently.
Client: The Old Vic