the old british school, reading
the old british school on southampton street is one of reading's early public schools, now grade II listed. alexander james homes asked us to convert it into 14 homes. years of neglect had left the building in poor condition, and the challenge was to repair and adapt it without losing the character that made it worth saving.
working with english heritage (now historic england) and reading borough council, we carried out a full structural refurbishment and planned the homes around the way the building had grown over time. two contemporary new houses complete the site. it was one of our first projects, and the start of our long relationship with ajc.
the best conversions let the building tell its story.
historic buildings carry the marks of the people who used them. keeping those traces, even the smallest, is what makes a conversion feel like a continuation of the building's life rather than a fresh start inside an old shell.
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where ajc began
this was our first project with alexander james. more than 12 years on, we still work together, now across everything from listed buildings to new homes and social housing. it's a relationship built on delivering what we promise.
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traces of school life
we kept the building's working history in place: the winding gear of a pulley system that hoisted goods up into the storage lofts, the original fireplaces where school meals were cooked, and the small scratch marks on the brickwork where schoolboys once sharpened their pencils.
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where new meets old
years of neglect had badly damaged the facing brickwork, so sections of wall were carefully taken down and rebuilt. a small projecting brick marks the line where the new work meets the old, so the repair is honest rather than hidden.
