The Springboard Consultancy Training Facilities - Holwell

The Springboard Consultancy Limited (based at Holwell, East Down, Barnstaple, North Devon) is run by Jenny Daisley and Liz Willis and is the UK’s market leader in developing, designing, delivering and evaluating single and mixed gender programmes for personal and work development training programmes.

Springboard have won numerous awards for the quality of their training programmes. The consultancy was started to enable as many women as possible to gain access to good quality development training. More than 177,000 (mainly women) have benefited from their training, across 25 countries worldwide.

Holwell is a 300 year old farmhouse with associated other buildings, includ-ing stables, barns, granary and redundant water wheel, this is set within four acres of land on the edge of Exmoor, 800ft above sea level in a remote and beautiful location. The property is also the home of the two partners and is the centre for the company’s specialist training courses.

New buildings are replacing old ones at the rate of only 0.5 % of the total per year, so it is vital to make the very best use of what already exists. Given that buildings in the UK consume about half of our total energy pool, for the country to make any difference to carbon emissions, we must up-grade existing stock and do so in ways that in keeping with their original de-sign.

General Aims of Project

• Sensitive renovation of redundant two storey cob and stone barn to provide exemplar ecologically driven training facilities
• Sympathetic renovation of unused dwelling/barn to provide residential accommodation, linked to the training facilities
• Regeneration of rural buildings to provide rural employment, together with enhancing the environment

Accommodation

Conference Suite

• Provision of one large space to accommodate up to 12 people
• Naturally day lit space with the ability to black out
• Congregation space outside main training room
• Creation of new staircase and adequate fire escape

Residential Accommodation

• Two bedrooms
• Bathroom
• Small kitchenette
• Small lounge

The Architecture

The accommodation was designed to be consistent with the environmental policy that the clients have developed for the company.

With this in mind, the training room and associated residential accommodation has been designed to the highest environmental standards and also to be sympathetic with the historical farmyard setting and to enhance the feeling of continuity of the site.

Sustainable Design

The following sustainable design principles have been incorporated in the project:

One of the key environmental design principles that have led the design of all phases of the development at Holwell Farm is to minimise the embodied energy of the buildings.

This principle informs the construction method of the buildings as well as specific materials and components used. The design and specification of the buildings has minimised the use of high embodied energy materials including aluminium and lead and other heavy metals, petro-chemical based paints and stains, concrete/cement and plastics.

Site work and Construction

The contractors were issued with ‘green employers requirements’ as part of the contract documents, which detailed the environmental ethos of the pro-ject from the outset and makes a contractual obligation to ensure all construction processes are undertaken in a low environmental impact manner, such as:

• Careful waste management on site
• Recycling on site
• Non toxic materials were used in the building and during the construction (e.g. cleaning)

The buildings have been designed to have little or no thermal bridging in their construction.

Materials

All materials have been chosen which are low in embodied energy, sustainably sourced, local wherever possible and non-toxic, including:

• Natural materials – natural roof slate, cladding slate, marmoleum to wet areas, timber floor boards, clay quarry tiles, earth based plaster, etc
• Recycled newspaper insulation (Cellulose fibre)
• Organic paints, waxes and stains throughout
• All timber has been sustainably sourced, e.g. FSC accredited
• Avoiding the use of PVC by careful product selection (e.g. LSF electrical cabling, clay underground pipe-work, ABS water pipes, timber fascias, soffits and barge boards, timber windows and doors
• Electrical wiring in the bedrooms is radial to reduce low level electro-magnetic fields (EMF’s)
• Energy efficient high performance triple glazed timber windows
• Ground source heat pump
• Wood burner in lounge area of residential accommodation – uses timber from the farm

Materials have also been designed into the scheme, so that they can be effi-ciently used to reduce waste, e.g. designed so that whole sheets can be used without cutting.

Energy Efficiency

The buildings are superinsulated with 300mm recycled newspaper insulation in the walls and 350mm in the roofs and high performance double glazed timber windows and doors have been used to similarly minimise heat loss.

Thermal mass is incorporated in the solid floor construction of the ground floor. Thermal mass, in conjunction with passive ventilation design, moderates the internal temperature of the building and prevents the building over-heating in the summer. Energy efficiency concerns have also been ad-dressed by careful detailing which ensures that there are no thermal bridges and that the building is airtight.

U Values

Floor	0.10 W/m2K
	(200mm EPS insulation)
Windows/Doors	1.20 W/m2K
	(double glazed, low-E, argon filled)
Walls	0.13 W/m2K
	(300mm cellulose insulation)
Roof	0.13 W/m2K
	(350mm cellulose insulation)

When designing low energy buildings, it is important to insulate the buildings well. The buildings at Holwell Farm surpassed the building regulation requirements by a considerable margin. Similarly, it is vital to ensure that buildings are airtight so that heat does not escape. The buildings achieved air permeability of 3m3/hour/m2 total surface area at 50PA when tested to CIBSE Standard TM23 testing of buildings (fan pressurisation test) for air leakage. This compares to building regulation requirements of 10m3/hour/m2.

Space Heating and Hot Water

The training room and residential accommodation has been designed not to require space heating, except for during spells of extremely cold weather. However, for periods when heating is required, this is provided by a geothermal ground source heat pump located in a small lean-to construction to the rear of the training room. There is under floor heating in the training room and throughout the residential accommodation. There is also a woodburner provided in the lounge area of the residential accommodation which forms a focal point in the room. The wood for the woodburner is provided from the site.

Natural Light

All the accommodation has been designed to maximise natural daylight, to give a light airy feel whilst being primary day lit. Light coloured finishes on walls, ceilings and floors further help to reflect light into the units.

Artificial Lighting

The accommodation has been designed and fitted with light fittings that will only take low energy high frequency bulbs (standard tungsten bulbs cannot be used).

Water Efficiency

Holwell draws its water from is its own water source, however, to reduce the amount of water used, low water appliances, such as 2/4 litre dual flush WCs, pressure reduction valves and low water showers and taps have been used.

Passive Stack Ventilation

This has been used on all units for the energy efficient ventilation of kitchens and bathrooms. There is no requirement for electricity run mechanical ventilation. Humidity controlled extracts and trickle vents have been installed to provide an intelligent passive stack response to moisture.

Healthy Buildings and Healthy Environment

• Careful selection of building materials, components and design principles ensures a ‘healthy environment. The following criteria were employed where practical
• Specification of hard floor surfaces throughout, such as, tiles, marmoleum and timber prevent dustmites, which can live in carpets and other fabrics
• Energy efficiency and adequate and natural ventilation
• Natural daylighting
• Organic and/or mineral paints stains and waxes throughout
• Minimal use of products containing Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
• Avoidance of the use of PVC by careful product selection (e.g. LSF electrical cabling, ABS waste pipes, timber fascias, soffits and barge boards, timber windows, etc.
• Use of sustainably sourced materials Use of materials with low embodied energy
• Locally sourced materials

Low Maintenance

Low maintenance and easily cleanable materials have been specified, including green oak cladding (minimal maintenance), galvanised steel rainwater goods, marmoleum and limestone tiling to ground floors, low maintenance ventilation system (no fans or ducts to clean). An ecological cleaning manual has been provided to avoid unnecessary toxic cleaning products from being used.

Partners Included in the Scheme

Springboard Consultancy	Client
Gale & Snowden Architects	Architects
PWH Associates	Quantity Surveyor
Loosemore & Son	Contractor
	Ground source heat pump