Aerial illustration of a community center with a green roof, a playground with children, a parking lot, and surrounding trees.

The Arncliffe

Retrofit and extension vision for the community and sports centre

The Arncliffe Centre proposes a retrofit and extension scheme for existing community centre to enable an expanded range of activities. Based in the community of Halewood, this project was developed to RIBA Stage 3.   

Initially, HSA were invited to review and re-design the building’s entrance, however a strategic review of how the building was used discovered more fundamental problems that needed to be addressed. The project brief was expanded in partnership with Halewood Town Council to refurbish the centre, create a welcoming entrance, and enhance spatial flexibility for diverse uses. Proposals included fabric upgrades, a front extension, and improvements to car parking and landscaping. HSA identified funding to support Halewood Town council in exploring the overall sustainability of the building to meet a brief developed as a result of input from staff, building users and the wider community of Halewood. 

Designs for the new entrance and café offer a safe place to meet friends and get reasonably priced or free healthy food and drinks. There is also an external covered terrace for when the building is open, which facilitates better indoor/outdoor provision and monitoring. The inclusion of several separate meeting spaces allows for flexible uses from education to confidential meetings. Simple changes such as centralising the toilets and providing separate entrances and circulation between the two main function spaces will mean that multiple activities can happen concurrently.

Single-story white building with a sloped metal roof, small windows with brown frames, and a sign that reads 'The Arncliffe Centre'. There are parking spaces in front, a wooden pole, and several tall streetlights under a cloudy sky.

Existing Arncliffe building

Exterior view of a building labeled The Arncliffe with people entering and sitting inside, and a woman with children outside.
Interior of a modern community with people sitting, standing, and walking, including a woman with a stroller. There are large windows showing trees outside, a high wooden ceiling with exposed beams, and a reception or information desk on the right.
Illustration of a modern outdoor café with children playing and adults relaxing, featuring a covered patio with string lights, tables, chairs, and a green roof.
Several handwritten notes and sketches about the Arncliffe Sports and Community Centre, including ideas for sports, activities, and features such as window upgrades, a kids' club, and a mental health station.
A young woman and a young man are discussing a building floor plan on a large sheet of paper with sticky notes and markers. The woman points at the plan while the man listens attentively. There are chairs, a water bottle, and other people in the background.
A diagram of a house layout with different areas labeled, including bar, function room, reception, sports hall, cafe/kiosk, office/meeting space, meeting space, memory lane, football grass roots, council staff, building management, and various corridors connecting these areas. The diagram uses circles and icons for each area, with some color coding.

“Our proposal successfully achieved the 2025 non-domestic building target for the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge at the end of Stage 3, attaining a DEC rating of B (<110). This is a significant improvement from the existing ‘F’ rating.”

HSA worked alongside PlacEd to engage the local community of Halewood and the existing building users in the design, planning and development of the Arncliffe proposal. As a result of the engagement feedback, Halewood Town Council developed a Youth Council to mirror the work of the full council and advocate on behalf of young people across the township. Separate workshop sessions were undertaken with this group who provided input towards the final design ideas.

A community outdoor event with children and adults gathered around an orange canopy tent on a grassy area. The tent has posters and craft supplies, and children are engaged in activities like bubble blowing and playing with toys. Adults are talking and helping the children.
People at an outdoor event looking at information boards under an orange tent, with a sign in the background that mentions Arncliffe Sports Community.
People gathered at an outdoor information booth with an orange canopy, discussing and reviewing posters with pink post-it notes, near a white van and signs at a sports and community center on a partly cloudy day.
Two large poster boards with survey questions regarding facilities, activities, and design ideas, some with sticky notes for comments, displayed under a red canopy.

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