Diversified learning

In collaboration with the Royal Veterinary College, we are upgrading and reconfiguring their teaching laboratories at the Camden Campus to create an inclusive, accessible, sustainable, and modern environment for both students and lecturers. The laboratories have been specifically designed to enhance and enable the learning experience for everyone, creating an equal experience for all users. The layout includes the lecturer’s desk at the front of the room, benching orientated perpendicular to the windows, and shared workspace such as sinks and prep space along the external facade.

The focus of the design brief was to enable every student and lecturer to have the same experience within the space, regardless of ability or impairment. The design includes features such as height-adjustable laboratory-style benching, DDA-compliant sinks, with elbow-controlled taps to prevent cross-contamination and easy-to-grip cupboard handles. A colour-contrasted material palette ensures safety for visually impaired students while hearing loops enable full engagement for those with hearing difficulties. Acoustic treatment has also been provided within the space to improve sound quality and reduce sound reverberation. Multiple TVs installed throughout the space provide live streams of the lecturer’s desk and class demonstrations, allowing all students to have the same visual learning experience.

The building services have also been upgraded to improve ventilation and create a more consistent lighting strategy throughout the rooms.

Due to the amount of joinery within the rooms, it was important to use materials that were going to provide the most sustainable and long-lasting solution. The product we have chosen to create the bespoke joinery workbenches not only has a 50-year life span but is actually carbon negative, for every square meter used we are saving the equivalent of 7.65kg of C02.