New porters' lodge and entrance planned for Homerton College

Tenderstream member Alison Brooks Architects has won the contest to design the new Porters' Lodge and Principal Entrance for Homerton College, Cambridge. The challenge posed to the competitors in this two-stage competition was to create a new entrance appropriate to the size and ambition of Cambridge University’s newest college. The planned upgrade includes a porters' lodge which both welcomes first-time visitors and meets the needs of resident students, as well as the expansion of the College Library, allowing it to host exhibitions and provide study space.

The winning design is described as a ‘college lantern’, taking the form of a three-storey pavilion positioned within a new square. The ground floor accommodates the lodge, which contains a large foyer and exhibition area on its northern side. A new glazed link connects the new foyer to the existing library, with a broad veranda to welcome visitors. A large copper clad structure rising above the lodge will house the Children’s Literature Resource Centre on the first floor, above which is a storey of research rooms and a large storage area for books.

Professor Geoff Ward, Principal of Homerton College, stated: “Alison Brooks have produced a compelling design concept, based on a new 'beacon' building, which will through dialogue and consultation result in a beautiful, multi-purpose and future-facing answer to the College's needs."

Other recent successes for the firm include new buildings in Eddington, Cambridge and the Cohen Quadrangle, a reinvention of the Oxbridge quadrangle for Exeter College, Oxford. On winning the contest for Homerton College, Alison Brooks said: “We’re delighted with this opportunity to design Homerton College’s new Entrance Building and Children’s Literature Resource Centre as a welcoming ‘lantern’ and multi-purpose hub for the College’s communities. We’re very much inspired by Homerton’s campus, its arts and crafts legacy and we look forward to producing its first net zero mass timber building.”

Lucy Nordberg
TenderStream Head of Research

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