Holy Cross Sixth Form College
Working closely with the staff at Holy Cross Sixth Form College, Bury, we were invited to design and furnish their Student Services reception area and staff offices. This specialist A Level college has a long record of being in the top ten colleges nationally for results, therefore needed an environment befitting their status.
Committed to providing high quality facilities and resources for both students and staff, significant building works have taken place in recent years. The latest development is the extension and remodelling of the Student Services area to allow for an improved reception and staff work areas.
Our brief was to provide a flexible open plan workspace where staff and other college support functions could operate together under one roof. The college also wanted to transform the reception area into a contemporary space where students would have easy access to the facilities.
We began the consultation process by; along with the staff, visiting other schools and colleges in the area, looking at their reception and office facilities. Taking on board all their essential individual department requirements and ‘wish list’ and using our previously successful interior design skills in this sector, we began designing the space.
Our efficient space planning allowed us to accommodate all the departments comfortably into the open plan support office area. Furniture in warm colours, materials and finishes along with flooring and lighting provide a fresh, bright and comfortable solution for this outstanding college.
We also undertook a full storage audit. The result of which, along with the strict exam regulations imposed on schools, meant that we needed to incorporate a secure room, with lockable storage to this area for use by the examinations team.
Our experience in bespoke furniture allowed us to design a reception desk to accommodate up to 4 staff and secure storewall that was not only DDA and Health & Safety compliant, but that also resolved storage issues. We created the reception desk to mirror the feature bulkhead and lighting above and fitted pigeon holes for stationary and additional storage underneath the desk to allow the working area to remain neat and tidy. The new desk, in a warm cream with oak features, compliments the flooring and other finishes within the space.
Detailed discussions at an early stage and working closely with the college staff throughout ensured the project was delivered on time and on budget.
This was a significant culture change for the staff, but one that they have fully embraced. We are extremely proud of what has been achieved and look forward to developing our relationship with the college in the future.
The Head of Finance commented; “Whitespace were very helpful throughout the process, nothing was too much trouble and attention to detail was great”