A series of new student accommodation buildings at the University of Roehampton, also known as Chadwick Hall. Skelly & Couch was appointed to carry out full mechanical, electrical, public health and environmental services for the University of Roehampton on this design and build.

New Library Building and Refurbishment of Kitchen New Library Building and Refurbishment of Commercial Kitchen and Upper Hall within a Grade I Listed Context.

A new four-storey library creates social and study spaces and connects to an adjacent historic building. Sustainable measures include mixed ventilation with MVHR in winter, replacing gas-fired heating with heat pumps and south-facing PVs. The project also upgrades a commercial kitchen to be fully electric.

A new three-storey library creates social and study spaces and connects to an adjacent historic building. Sustainable measures include mixed ventilation with MVHR in winter, replacing gas-fired heating with heat pumps and south-facing PVs. The project also upgrades a commercial kitchen to be fully electric.

Christ's College, just outside Cambridge's medieval city boundary, is replacing its 1974 library with a new three-storey building, offering bright, multifunctional study spaces and a landscaped courtyard. It will connect via a bridge to the Grade I listed 500-year-old college library, while an adjacent 1913 building is refurbished and linked. The project also refurbishes the kitchen and upper hall, enhancing functionality and historic character and supports carbon-neutral goals by 2050 with operational energy below 60 kWh/m²/year, 475 kg CO₂/m², and BREEAM Excellent.

The building is highly insulated and airtight, with daylight maximised through mezzanines, open floors, and atrium voids. In the upper hall, the original roof is exposed to highlight its historic character while improving energy efficiency.

Inefficient plant has been replaced with high-efficiency systems serving the kitchen and upper hall. Rooftop air handling units were removed, with services carefully coordinated through chimney risers in the new library, and kitchen plant relocated indoors to improve aesthetics. In the new library, a mixed-mode ventilation strategy combines mechanical heat recovery in winter with natural ventilation in summer, supported by thermal dampers and chimney return paths. Acoustic design controls internal and external noise from Christ's Lane, with attenuation preventing sound from returning through the plenum. Heating and cooling are provided by air source heat pumps with underfloor and radiant ceiling panels, while fan coil units in the upper hall and library study rooms maintain comfortable temperatures. All gas-fired systems have been replaced with electric alternatives, and the kitchen has been fully electrified with reconfigured washup and hot pass areas. South-facing PV panels further enhance energy efficiency.

Water efficiency is enhanced through rainwater harvesting and a sustainable drainage system, including a rain garden fed by an above-ground collection feature.

The new library is a transformative addition, enhancing the operation of adjacent heritage buildings while creating an inspiring spaces for learning, creativity, and community.

A new Day House for St John’s Independent School in Leatherhead, Surrey. The building is one of a number of projects Skelly & Couch have worked on for the school as part of its delivery of a five-year masterplan for the campus. It was delivered along with the conversion and refurbishment of an existing historic stable building into a 6^th Form Centre under a phased construction programme. 

Exemplary refurbishment of the school’s Grade II*-listed Main House.

The swimming pool, along with changing rooms and a multipurpose teaching and events space, is one of many phases of a site-wide energy masterplan developed by Skelly & Couch for the school, which features a CHP district heating network, sustainable technologies and a focus on passive strategies.

A new, 134-bed student residential building for the 400-year-old college at its site on Iffley Road, Oxford.

This project was a new-build school for the London Borough of Havering. The design was based on the Exemplar School principle developed by Walters & Cohen and Mark Skelly in 2003, locating all the classrooms adjacent to a central heart space and roof play decks, and was developed to accommodate the specific needs of this site and school.

Exeter Royal Academy for Deaf Education is creating an exciting new learning environment and student accommodation for its pupils. Skelly & Couch has been appointed to undertake full mechanical, electrical and environmental design for the pioneering project.

Building on the resounding success of UP Projects’ pilot Floating Cinema 2011 project, Morris + Company won the Open Architecture Competition to design the next phase of the acclaimed venture, conceived to offer a permanent lifespan on the water.

Skelly & Couch was appointed to provide technical input for the masterplan and outline planning application for future developments at the City of London Freemen’s School, a co-educational day and boarding school located in Ashtead Park, Surrey.