Daniel House

Breathing new life into a building that is held in warm regard by all who studied there.

Serving as a residential and teaching overseas annex to Samford University since the early 1980’s, Daniel House was in need of some tender love and care. We were appointed to develop an interior scheme which reimagined the experience of living and studying in London and revitalise the space. Following an initial appraisal of the existing teaching and dormitory accommodation, a focus on the students’ experience of living, learning, and socialising within the building became central to the design concept.

The design proposals focused on enhancing the existing architectural features while improving the spatial quality of personal, social, and teaching spaces. The dormitory spaces were reconfigured with purpose-made bunk beds which provided a personal space while creating larger circulation spaces within each dormitory. The main Parlour Room served as both a teaching and social space.

We designed a bespoke chair which allowed various configurations to be arranged for different seating and event styles. The existing kitchen area was reimagined as a bistro space with an external dining courtyard which also functioned as a teaching space when required. The building retained many of the period features, and although not listed, we took a conservation approach to retain and enhance as much of the existing detail as possible.

Some surprising discoveries were made during the journey, such as the original tiled entrance hall and elaborate cornices at first floor level. Over the years many of the period featured were concealed by ceilings and partitions to meet fire separation requirements. A fresh approach was taken to meeting the fire protection requirements with the aid of a Fire Engineer, which allowed many of the ceilings and partitions to be removed while enhancing the fire protection and escape provision.

Care was also taken with the environmental design to increase the fabric performance of the existing building as much as practical and in excess of the Building Regulations requirements. All windows were double/secondary glazed, a Mechanical Heat Recovery Ventilation system was also introduced to improve air-quality and thermal efficiency.