Reuben House, Peckham
Overview
Reuben House in Peckham, London is a 3-storey purpose-built development, which is now home to 33 young people who were previously facing homelessness. The project was commissioned by Centrepoint, the UK’s leading homelessness charity, to provide a home for 16–25-year old’s in need, with the rent capped at a third of an individual’s salary.
SBS Cladding worked with sub-contractors, JML Building Services to supply Hardie® Panel fibre cement cladding in Grey Slate, Cobble Stone and Pearl Grey to the project.
Concept to completion
The surrounding area is relatively mixed in terms of architectural styles, with a range of residential and office buildings with a mix of traditional and contemporary facades. Therefore, the architects Crawford Partnership wanted to utilise a contemporary cladding material that was robust, watertight, had good thermal performance and met fire resistance guidelines. Hardie® Panel from James Hardie was the perfect solution with its A2 fire rating and high-performance credentials. The panels also served as a way to disguise the modular nature of the structure within.
Once Hardie® Panel cladding had been specified by the architects, SBS Cladding were approached to supply the cladding material. Before being delivered onto site, the panels were all fabricated to specific design sizes and labelled so the correct panels could be quickly found during the installation process. Once the panels arrived on site, they were able to be installed onto the facade quickly and efficiently.
Within the apartment block, there are 33 flats, each one measuring 21m2 and including a kitchen, dining area, bedroom and bathroom. The self-contained flats are configured around a central communal garden and recreational space, with communal facilities located on the ground floor. The individual homes were all delivered to site with the kitchen and bathroom, along with all electrics and plumbing fully installed and rooms pre-decorated. This modular build allowed for Centrepoint to start using the homes much quicker than would be possible in a traditional build, with construction times reduced by over 50%, giving Centrepoint a cost-effective solution to affordable living.
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