News → HAT Projects

October 1, 2020

St Nicholas Square

We are really thrilled that our work in 2018 with Colchester Borough Council on their Key Public Spaces is being taken forward, after ‘We Are Colchester’, a local partnership involving public, private and voluntary organisations was awarded £1 million from the Government’s Town Deal Fund. Cllr David King has commented that “We want a safe, vibrant and attractive social hub for people to meet and sit outside, helping to blend the day and night-time economies and boosting footfall.”

We will be focusing on St Nicholas Square, the site of the former St Nicholas churchyard, which is gradually becoming surrounded by a range of bars and restaurants. We aim to retain the memory of the small graveyard plots left over from the demolition of the church in the 1950s, while creating a lively and welcoming square by reducing the current dominance of vehicle movements through the space.

June 22, 2020

Smith Centre shortlisted for RIBA award!

We are thrilled to have had the Science Museum Smith Centre shortlisted for the RIBA Regional Awards, South London. All of the shortlisted projects from across the country are featured in the June edition of the RIBA Journal. The awards are judged by physically visiting each shortlisted project, which has unfortunately been delayed and the awards consequently postponed due to the current coronavirus crisis. However, RIBA hope that in line with official government advice they will be able to resume judging and conclude the process in the second half of the year.

June 18, 2020

Ely Museum continues on site

Although Covid-19 has brought some delays, our work at Ely Museum continues to make great progress on site, with the new extension really taking shape. More information about the project is available on the dedicated project page and featured here are a selection of images from our latest site visit.

March 20, 2020

The quiet life must be heard

Hana has written a piece for the latest edition of ICON magazine, calling for a new design discipline that shares and amplifies the innovative, radical thinking of the countryside.

"Rural communities want rural design, not an adaptation of urban design."

"Our rural communities want radical change – but we want it in a way that grows from the understanding we have of our own places and communities, not a set of patronizing assumptions about how we are told we should develop. "

Read the full article here.

February 24, 2020

The Modern Day Picturesque

Hana will be taking part in a panel discussion exploring "the radical changes needed to secure the future of our countryside" in response to Petra Marko and Sarah Featherstone's RIBA funded research report and work on VeloCity, alongside the co-authors and Meredith Bowles of Mole Architects, chaired by Alicia Pivaro. The event, titled 'The Modern Day Picturesque', is part of RIBA's 'Perspectives on Architecture' series and will take place on Tuesday 10th March at RIBA in London. Further information is available here.

February 13, 2020

Jaywick Sands Workspace

Building on our work for the Jaywick Sands Place Plan, we have been commissioned by Tendring District Council to investigate the potential for the development of affordable workspace units in Jaywick, with a focus on supporting business growth and start-ups within the local community. We are collaborating with consultant surveyor Richard Bailey on the project.

February 7, 2020

Hana a judge for MacEwan Award 2020

Hana was honoured to be asked to be one of the judges for the MacEwan Award 2020, run by the RIBA Journal and focusing on social responsibility, 'architecture for the common good'. A priority on the environment was also a feature this year, as noted in the February edition of the RIBA Journal (here), along with features on the eventual winner (Park Palace Ponies, in Liverpool) and the other commended entries.

"It's nice and all from the right heart." Hana on Margate Caves, one of the commended entries.

January 27, 2020

All at sea? Ken Worpole & Hana Loftus in conversation

As part of Essex Book Festival Hana will be in conversation with writer and social historian Ken Worpole around the topic of flooding and the Essex coastline, with particular reference to our work at Jaywick Sands. This is due to take place at Firstsite, Colchester on Sunday March 15th at 11am. Further information and tickets are available here. UPDATE: due to unforseen circumstances the talk has had to be postponed to an as yet unscheduled date later in the year.

January 16, 2020

Trinity Works feature in AJ!

Trinity Works, HAT's home, has been featured in Architects' Journal in an edition focusing on architects who design their own workspaces. It was a great opportunity for us to talk about the ethos of Trinity Works and our aims in developing the building, as well as reflect on our practice.

As well as some great photos of the building, AJ also produced a short film by Jim Stephenson, available to view here. Our project page for Trinity Works is here and the article is available to read in full here.

January 8, 2020

Smith Centre featured in Architecture Today

The Smith Centre was featured in the January edition of Architecture Today, as part of a focus on the first phase of projects in the ambitious reinvention of the Science Museum. It's great to see two such diverse types of event spaces commissioned by the same client (as the Smith Centre and Mary Duggan Architects' space, also pictured), as the article suggests:

"The masterplan vision enables the Science Museum to have the best of all worlds in order to truly welcome everyone, because with diverse projects linked by a 'golden thread' of vision, sustainability and consistency in standards, "we can choose inspiring differences in pace, language and narratives for each space.""

The full article is available to read here.