‘The Ballet School’ Student Residences

The project involved the conversion of a Grade B Listed sandstone tenement and the construction of two new apartment blocks that provide high-quality accommodation for up to 103 students, and was developed for end user CRM Students.

The existing tenement building was the former home to the Royal Ballet of Scotland. Given the building’s age and condition, considerable upgrades were required to the building structure and fabric to provide a new lease of life. This building produced a total of 37 one-bedroom apartments as well as office space for management staff.
The remaining apartments were constructed within two four-storey blocks located in the rear courtyard of the tenement; a space occupied by a former army drill hall that was demolished prior to commencement.

Given the tightly constrained site, the use of offsite methods of construction was crucial to the viability of the construction. A prefabricated timber framed wall panels system was utilised for the build, integrated with floor and roof cassettes, and built around a ‘traditionally’ constructed masonry stair core.

In 2014, the project was awarded restigious RIAS and RIBA ‘Best Design’ awards.