Truro College, Fal and Lynher Buildings

Contact Details:	Liz Fisher lizf@trurocollege.ac.uk
Type of Project:	This was a new build extending the main site. There were two motives for the project: Fal building: A new HE building for the main site campus. The College had developed HE over several years integrated within Programme Areas across the campus but having reached 700 full time HE students it was important to create a new discrete HE facility. Lynher building: A new FE building to accommodate the increase in the number of FE students (3700 full time FE students). The new building accommodates the Sports Programme Area and the Health & Community Studies Programme Area.
Start/End Date:	May 2005 - 0ct 2006.

Background & Context

This was an expansion of the estate. For the last six or seven years Truro College has run HE courses in FE provision buildings and with the Combined Universities of Cornwall being established, a specific HE building was required.

FE students are excluded from using this building unless they are escorted in by a member of staff specifically to look at something. It is a very different environment than the FE environment. There has been a growing need over the last four or five years for this kind of facility - but it has taken time to get funding in place and securing the land. Land was purchased adjacent to the Truro campus.

All of our spaces are designed to be flexible.

The building is environmentally friendly and in some areas above the required standard e.g. insulation. There is anti-solar glazing in both buildings with a Brise Soleil (sun shades) around the Fal building.

Wherever possible the lighting is low energy and there are automatic controls to turn out the lights where possible. Lights will shut down if there is no movement within 20 minutes in classrooms and offices.

The lights nearest to the windows will automatically go lower in bright sunlight if the room lights are turned on.

The chilled beam technology in the LRC means that natural convection gives a consistent temperature across the space. Air is blown into the space through vents in the floor. The temperature of this air is controlled according to the temperature of the outside air. i.e. more heat in cool weather.

In Fal a huge central circular skylight allows a column of natural light into the space. In Lynher a half circle of light allows light into the back of the room and there are windows running the entire length. The staff area in both LRC's was placed directly under this and a counter put in place. The other areas were designed around this central counter. The LRC staff were not involved in the design of the building but were given the spaces to design once the main design was established. This is not a desirable situation - full involvement would allow for better utilisation.

In Fal the computing area has a half height divider along one side of it - but this was for purely practical purposes - so that computers could be placed alongside it - they needed something that was quite firm and could have cables run along it. The other areas are not visibly separated by partitions as such although they have been set up in such a way as to give a visible prompt to the user as they enter the space with regard to how the space is separated.

The side walls are made of glass and if you look down from them you see an atrium at either side of the building which is itself completely glass and allows an impressive view over the Cornish landscape. The LRC is subsequently very light and feels very spacious.

The windows do not open - the temperature is regulated by the chilled beam system.

In Lynher use of the space is obvious by the furniture. The windows do open.

The Fal and Lynher buildings are completely new buildings with infrastructure (car parks, delivery etc.) The LRC takes up much of the third floor in Fal. In Lynher we were allocated a room well after the design had been completed so had to 'make do' but the space is light and interesting. In Fal the LRC is a multi-purpose suite with computers, support staff (IT, library and career development), book stock, study area and Wi-Fi area for use of laptops. Lynher is similar but without the careers staff or the Wi-Fi.

In Fal activity centres on student borrowing resources and using IT facilities. It is an enormous room with air-handling and heating designed for the entire room so it was not possible to build solid partitions within the space. So that users working on different activities don't disturb others, the area is informally divided into seven main areas and an additional small area for careers information. The main areas are: the book stacks, the counter area, the Wi-Fi area, the quiet study area, the social area, the computing area and a media workshop area where students from the art and photography areas have specialised kit for mounting work.

The computer area is in one corner of the huge room and there are 37 computers in this space on wedge shaped tables for efficient use of space. This wedge footprint maximises the amount of space available to the student. The student has space for books, etc but the furniture actually takes up a very small footprint on the floor because of its shape. The wedge shape was used to maximise the number of computers that could be installed; if we had used rectangular or round tables the potential number of computers would be much reduced. This was important as experience has shown there is always a requirement for more computers than are available in an LRC. Sourcing of the wedge shaped tables was by chance - a company involved in a new build school next door to Truro College dropped in on the off-chance that they might be of some assistance and they showed images of the alteration work that was underway at Exeter College. A subsequent visit to Exeter College showed that the wedge shaped desks being used were very space efficient.

In Lynher the same wedge shaped tables were used for the same reason i.e. space efficiency.