University of Cambridge welcomes a new hall of residence to their 1960s campus


Timber-clad halls and landscaped woodland make up this spectacular accommodation.


Cowan Court at the University of Cambridge adds a new halls of residence, the first to be built in over 50 years. Design studio, 6a Architects have just completed the works on the 68-room accomodation and it's now open to students. 

The college was founded in the early 1960s paying homage to Sir Winston Churchill in the ‘white heat of technology’. The original college buildings have been touted as the most significant architectural completions of the post-war period and in 2008, 6a won an international competition for their contemporary interpreation of the new courtyard building.

As one of the finest examples of 'English Brutalism' in the UK, the college have made an undoubted effort to update the premises towards the 21st century. The designers transformed the building’s raw original brick and board-marked concrete into an innovative, contemporary, low-energy timber building.

The building has three storeys forming around a square court in a similar fashion as the other historic courts found at the college. The square windows take on a playful approach with each spiralling up and around the building's corners.

Traditionally the courts at Cambridge served and defined vertical communities of rooms, however, Cowan Court intends to take on a new approach. Cloisters perform this function, encouraging social community at the centre of the building while incorporating landscaped woodland in the form of birch trees for residents to meet and study.

The building was intricatley designed to serve as a sustainable source as well as keeping to its traditional roots. Passive ventilation, triple glazing and super insulation reduce the amount of energy consumed while solar electricity and rainwater collection lower their energy requirements even more.

The Churchill College addresses the demanding environmental issues of our generation while creating a contempoarary space where students can excel and progress in for many years to come. 

Cowan Court opened to students this autumn 2016. 








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