Benjamin Abraham

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A design for a school amongst an emarging sustainable housing developement which could also be used to generate energy.

I was born on the island of Bahrain, raised in Dubai and have roots from India. Sustainability has been a point of interest- often influenced by designs within these regions. With temperatures rising, I consider sustainable strategies as vital in mitigating further environmental damage. The Masters programme has bestowed the knowledge and implementation of said strategies.

Benjamin Abraham, MArch Sustainable Urban Design

Trent Basin

An emerging sustainable housing scheme along the Trent Basin demanded the need for a school with various key objectives in mind. Key amongst those was ‘school as a power station’- the school pumping additional generated energy into the community battery during periods of disuse.

Other objectives of note were to be net-zero, creating a safe environment and giving back to the community.

The proposal TrentSide aimed to serve both infants and juniors with a sample of around 210 students per year. A core concept within the school’s fabric was the creation of ‘the atria’. The atria served as a multifunctional space- a library, an area to congregate, an amphitheatre and spill out area during lunch.

The design aspirations were to achieve Passivhaus- which was achieved post an iterative testing period. The building further allows for natural ventilation (with minimal overheating) while being adequately lit during occupancy hours through the year.