The new Living Planet Centre for WWF-UK in Woking is an outstanding, multi-purpose design which combines the charity’s offices with a public education and exhibition space, housed within an exemplar sustainable building. The Living Planet Centre demonstrates that a ‘BREEAM outstanding’ sustainable building can be delivered to budget when clients, design teams and contractors work closely together towards a common goal. This collaboration has created an inspiring working environment for a charity, raising awareness of the issues that affect our natural world.
The judges were impressed by the delivery of an exceptionally attractive building from a demanding brief and to a limited budget. The superstructure is entirely exposed and is integral to the building’s success. There is clear evidence of effective collaboration within the multidisciplinary design team. Both the diagrid timber roof and the straightforward concrete frame have been optimised to minimise their carbon footprint, using innovative carbon accounting. The embodied carbon was reduced by 42% from the original scheme design.