St Pancras Church Annexe

Lewes

St Pancras Church in Lewes was built in 1939 and Irelands Lane was established when the original Church and school was demolished. It is finished externally with bricks that we believe are Dorking Multi. These bricks are complimented by stone quoining and dressing around windows and doors.

BBM were appointed as Architects in early 2007. Our Clients, the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton, asked us to look at the site and consider the potential of designing a collection of community facilities, including two community halls, that could also work as a new entrance Nathex to the church itself, while also providing a diversity of accommodation serving the parish and local community.

BBM proposed that the new SPA building should be a contemporary architectural response to the brief and programme, as well as the constraints and potentials of the site. The first move was to remove the existing Priests and Boys Sacristy and the dig out a huge hole to allow for  two community halls, one on top of the other, with the roof of the upper Main Hall and its subsidiary facilities echoing the existing Sacristy roof that was removed. To facilitate this the Main Contractors, Redwing, had to install concrete underpinning propping up the church and forming retaining walls that is 1.5 stories deep.

To the south of this BBM created a new entrance hall or ‘Narthex’ with stairs and lift facilities. Again the roof form over the Nathex echo’s that of the existing but at a slightly lower level.

The roofs over these new spaces are perhaps the most visual and dynamic elements of the scheme. The accommodation below these wave-lift forms occupies the gently sloping ceilings that follow the form of the roof. We have suggested that the high point of the roof over the main hall has south-facing roof glazing, allowing dramatic and ever-changing natural light to wash over the sloping ceiling and down into the hall below. It will also allow occupants a view of the bell tower. In contrast the roof over the Narthex has north-facing roof glazing. This will provide a more gentle, consistent north light for this important reflective place.

New entrance doors to the Narthex are glazed to contrast with existing solid timber doors. They are also orientated to draw people in, in preference to the existing porch currently used. It is hoped that these doors will be easily ‘read’ by visitors as the new entrance to the church and community centre.

We have acknowledged the materials used on the existing church by specifying Tonbridge Heather Grey bricks for the main wall onto Irelands Way. This brick is a gentle tone that will  contrast well with the existing orange/ red colour of the church. It is hoped that we can salvage a pair of existing stone window reveals for this wall. We will endeavour to specify a lime-based mortar (recently used successfully by BBM at the University of Brighton), which will match the colour of existing, but with the added benefit of allowing the bricks to be re-used if the building is ever developed.

The proposed SPA building has been carefully designed to address the concerns outlined above. The building is a contemporary contribution to the character and appearance of the historic town of Lewes below, utilising local sustainable high quality materials that contribute to the rich pallet of materials already in use.