Scapolan Burney completes Milton Keynes work-to-resi conversion

Architect’s view

This retrofit project began with a soft strip-out of a 1980s Modernist office building, revealing hidden architectural elements concealed beneath banal office interiors of raised floors and false ceilings. This exercise led to a design process which sought to celebrate the structure discovered and give the building a new lease of life.

Inheriting floor plates spanning 159m, with columns at 9m intervals and curtain wall mullions at 1.5m centres, we carefully developed the layouts and detailed design to expose and showcase the existing structure. Instead of concealing the large cast concrete columns and beams, we chose to reveal their raw beauty by removing plaster, sandblasting them, and framing them within the new apartment layouts, aligning with the rhythm of the curtain wall façade.

The co-ordination of services was a meticulous process, ensuring they were discreetly housed above ceilings in non-habitable spaces, maximising ceiling heights and unveiling the ribbed concrete soffits in all living and bedroom spaces, which enjoy generous ceiling heights exceeding 3m. The introduction of sliding pocket doors wherever possible served to visually break the new grid of partitions, allowing residents to appreciate the linear character of the curtain wall glazing.

The completed project celebrates the original structure and quietly transforms a landmark Modernist office building into 200 homes in the heart of Milton Keynes.
Rick Burney, director, Scapolan Burney Architects

Phase 2 rooftop extension

Situated above a prominent and occupied mixed-use building including Milton Keynes Central Train Station, a high-performance unitised curtain wall facade design was carefully developed to build on the modernist architectural language, that can be assembled from prefabricated modular elements. The façade design sought to both engage with and vary from the existing curtain wall façade, with a new 1m-wide modular rhythm developed to align with every other mullion below. Expressive, deep aluminium fins were also introduced to provide further articulation and solar shading. The proposed rooftop extension seeks to enhance and celebrate its privileged setting, creating new homes with a civic character, tailored to the context.