The design and construction of the headquarters demonstrates the Society’s commitment to environmentally conscious building and sustainable living. Built on a brownfield site the building itself was a unique design, incorporating renewable materials such as timber, reclaimed brick and stone. To ensure sustainability the building’s features include a turf roof, rainwater harvesting, heat recovery from waste air and photovoltaic cells to contribute to the building`s energy needs.
The long awaited new headquarters provide a much-needed spacious workplace for the Society’s employees who outgrew their former premises some time ago. This additional space will allow the Ecology to expand and continue to grow, as well as creating an opportunity to become more involved with the local community. The final stage of the project, scheduled for 2004, is a straw-bale meeting room. This will be separate from the main building and will be available for use by the local community, as will the planned nature garden and dog walking facilities. The Society’s Chief Executive, Paul Ellis commented,
“In designing our new office we have looked to reflect the principles that guide our lending. We aim to have produced a building that is not only functional, but also inspirational, and a great place to work.”
The new headquarters ultimately showcase the Society’s beliefs and principles with regard to sustainable, environmentally conscious building, as promoted through the Society’s mortgage lending and savings schemes. It is important to the Society that it leads by example and this project has successfully illustrated the potential of contemporary, sustainable design and construction in small-scale office development.
