This project was procured under a Private Finance Initiative to provide Brighton and Hove City Council with a new civic library within the heart of the town. The new library also acted as a catalyst for the wider regeneration of the area.
From the outset, the design team worked closely to provide a seminal public building that minimised energy consumption. At the centre of the Jubilee is a free standing 2 storey reinforced concrete table structure which forms the main library reading and reference areas. Surrounding this central structure and space on three sides is a three storey steel framed building with hollow core precast concrete floor and roof units with dense concrete blockwork external and internal walls containing the childrens' library, IT suites, meeting rooms, offices, toilets, etc. The fourth side, facing south on to the new Jubilee Square is an exposed steel framed glazed facade rising the full height of the building incorporating a cantilevered circulation walkway and solar control louvres.
The engineering of the building meticulously supports the architectural intention and allows the structural mass to be fully utilised and integrated with the environmental control and thus to reduce the library's energy consumption. The hollow walls surrounding the central library space contain air ducts from the roof level plant rooms which feed air through the hollow core units thus conditioning it before entering the perimeter rooms and main library space. In winter the warm air is circulated back to the plant rooms at roof level and in summer the extract system is naturally driven by convection created by opening the three roof mounted wind towers centrally located over the main library
The library has gone on to increase usage three times over its expected numbers and won many awards as well as being short-listed for the prestigious RIBA Stirling Prize.
Architect: Bennett Associates (in association with Lomax Cassidy + Edwards)
Environmental Engineer: Fulcrum Consulting
Main contractor: ROK Group
Construction: September 2002 – December 2004
Total cost: £8,115,000