'myplace' by mark barfield architects
all images courtesy mark barfield architects

longbridge in birmingham, once the site of the largest manufacturing plant in the world,
could be transformed into a new place for young people through the myplace initiative,
a multi-million pound government programme.

the aim of myplace is to design, in partnership with the young people who will use them,
world class facilities to help them make the most of their free time and to deliver them
throughout the UK.

the factory design concept was developed by steven chilton of marks barfield architects
(MBA), creators of the london eye. supported by the sorrell foundation, MBA worked on
the myplace bid alongside pete dewar and jonathan hubbard of international branding
consultancy interbrand. together, they engaged with a dynamic group of nine local young
people aged 13-17 in the birmingham area who were given the role of the client on the project.
in the course of a series of workshops, inspirational visits and meetings, the ‘client’ identified
and agreed the priorities for the architecture and branding of their centre before presenting
the final concepts to their bid teams and stakeholders.

the history of longbridge is dominated by its industrial past. It is most notable for the production
of cars, perhaps the most celebrated being the iconic austin mini.

the similarities between manufacturing plants and the client’s aspirations for the building
became apparent early on in the development process. as a result, there was a consensus
to develop a concept for the 2000m sq space based around the factory’s historical associations.

the many design references to the heritage of the site include the window pattern on the main
facades which was inspired by an aerial photo of hundreds of newly manufactured mini cars.

the materials proposed - including concrete floors, colour coded for each level, plywood clad
internal walls, exposed services - are hard wearing, utilitarian and have an industrial aesthetic.
they are also well suited to the facility’s planned uses –performance/sports space, dance,
multimedia, café and welfare facilities, recording and TV production studios .

the engineers adams kara taylor have developed an innovative structural solution for
the perforated main facade: acrylic blocks are cast directly into the fibre reinforced
concrete wall.










ground floor


first floor


second floor


third floor


multimedia room


reception area


reception area


structural concept






structure

acrylic blocks


analysis of stresses