Dorothy Garrod Building, Newnham College, Cambridge
Dorothy Garrod Building, Newnham College, Cambridge
Contemporary gardens in Newnham’s listed heritage grounds
Location Cambridge, UK
This transformative landscape intervention delivers a sophisticated setting for new student accommodation, directly responding to the College’s distinct Arts and Crafts architectural style.
The initial masterplan thoroughly evaluated the spatial and ecological impacts of multiple development options across Basil Champneys’ celebrated, Grade II* listed gardens.
Ultimately, the new building wraps around a central garden courtyard, intentionally mirroring the historic grounds' baseline layout quality, horticultural variety, and spatial hierarchy.
Conceived as a contemporary flower garden, the central courtyard features an arrangement of lawns, structural trees, and flowing borders.
It is designed as an active, experiential transit route linking prominent building thresholds.
Social spaces are set between borders, combining an external dining terrace for the adjacent café with hidden seating spaces designed for quiet study and intimate gatherings.
Working closely with Newnham’s Garden Committee, the design bridges historical significance with progressive geometry.
The modern landscape interpretation of the classical Arts and Crafts philosophy - ‘sweetness and light’ -features rigid geometries that are tempered and softened by fluid, seasonally flowing perennial borders.
Substantial ground-level challenges at the new Sidgwick Avenue entrance demanded creative engineering beneath a mature avenue of plane trees protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO).
To overcome this without impacting critical root zones, a gently inclined granite ramp was constructed. This porous layout allows essential oxygen and rainwater to penetrate the soil, ensuring the long-term vitality of the historic canopy.
Client Newnham College, Cambridge
Architect Walters and Cohen Architects
Planning Authority Cambridge City Council
Status Completed - 2018