Church House

Church House provides commercial accommodation for the Church, alongside a variety of other tenants, as well as a high-profile conference centre. The building is the venue for the annual Church of England General Synod.

The brief was to provide modern, fully serviced office space, with the aim to drive down energy use while reusing as much of the existing equipment as possible. Structurally, we worked closely with the architect to minimise structural interventions to the historic fabric. Where this wasn’t possible, the structural works were designed to be simple to install.

Sustainability was integrated throughout the design process. Without compromising the building’s integrity, measures were introduced that enhance its longevity, reduce energy consumption, and support a more circular approach to refurbishment. This shaped the building services design, with the team testing where existing equipment could be justified, protected, recommissioned, and retained. The project includes the UK’s first commercial use of a breathable, spray-on cork lining that improves the thermal performance of existing floors and ceilings by 30%, alongside the retention and restoration of original architectural elements.

The reservicing of the building was completed on a floor-by-floor basis, connecting into the existing central heating, cooling, and ventilation systems while the building remained occupied. More unusually, the decision was taken to reuse the existing fan coil units that provide heating and cooling to each floor. The units varied in age across the building, but were typically around 12 to 15 years old, an age at which replacement would usually be considered the normal course of action. Our team worked to justify their retention, protect the units during construction, and recommission them as part of the completed installation.