Belfast-based Gilbert Ash will lead the construction of a new junior school and playground at the school, which was founded in 1666, more than 157 years before the Great Fire of London.
St Paul’s School is located on a 45-acre site adjacent to the River Thames in Barnes, west London, and the project will see the addition of two new buildings to the school’s campus.
West Junior High School will be a three-story building with a teaching block and changing rooms, while East Junior High School will be a two-story building with a teaching block and a two-story hall.
The junior high school west wing will form the central space of the school, provide a multifunctional exhibition space, and be surrounded by educational spaces to encourage its surroundings.
The east wing of the middle school will be connected to the west wing by a covered outdoor play area named “The Barn.”
Gilbert Ash managing director Ray Hutchinson said the firm was delighted to be working on the “prestigious project” and to be working with Hawkins Brown Architects again.
Mr Hutchinson said: “St Paul’s School has a deep history and has provided a first-class education for boys for hundreds of years. This project will ensure this legacy continues at Barnes for generations to come. We guarantee that it will be inherited.
“Gilbert Ash has a growing reputation for delivering outstanding projects in the education sector, many of which are in partnership with the team at Hawkins Brown.
“Together we have delivered outstanding projects at both the City of London Freemen’s School, Central Foundation Boys’ School and the Bartlett School of Architecture.
“We look forward to working again with Hawkins Brown, St Paul’s School and of course the rest of the team on this exciting project.”
Aiming for an excellent BREEAM rating, the new building will be heated with an air source heat pump, have photovoltaic panels installed on the roof and will also have a green roof system.
External drainage incorporates rainwater and wastewater diversions, porous surface overflow piping, and rain gardens.
Interior plans include acoustic wall panels, wood slat acoustic panels and lining, and flooring ranges from engineered hardwood flooring to linoleum and carpeted areas.
Construction is expected to be completed in fall 2025 and will occur in parallel with normal daily activities at the school, with staff and students being moved into temporary housing.
Gilbert Ash previously worked on the Stirling Prize-winning Everyman Theater in Liverpool and has been principal contractor on other cultural capital projects including Battersea Arts Center and Bristol Old Vic.
Its heritage portfolio includes the refurbishment and restoration of the Grade II-listed City of London Freemen’s School and the refurbishment and extension of the Grade I-listed kitchen and dining building at Jesus College, Cambridge .
In 2020, Gilbert Ash was named in the Sunday Times PwC Top Track 250 league table as the UK’s leading mid-market privately held company by largest turnover.
The firm’s projects have been shortlisted for the Royal Institute of British Architects’ Stirling Prize, including the Lyric Theater in 2012, the Giant’s Causeway Visitor Center in 2013 and, most recently, the Cambridge Central Mosque in 2021. Selected 4 times.