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British High Commission

Kilburn Nightingale Architects, Kampala, 2005

 

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From the southern tip of the site looking north 

Adrian Hobbs (website)     Download Original

  • From the southern tip of the site looking north    
  • Exterior view    
  • From the southern tip of the site looking north    
  • View of entrance building from guest car park    
  • Central courtyard    
  • When the trees in the courtyard are fully grown the shade might encourage greater use    
  • Clay block screens provide natural ventilation and create a dappled light    
  • The visa-consular waiting area; halfway between a warehouse and a church    
  • Internal view of circulation space    
  • Site plan    
  • Main building level one    
  • Main building level two    
  • Main building level four    
  • Visa-consular building level one    
  • Visa-consular building level two    
  • Section through courtyard of main building    
  • Perspective sketch    
  • The High Commission under construction     
  • The High Commission under construction     
  • The High Commission under construction     
  • The High Commission under construction    
  • Detailed section    
  • Construction details    

Embassy offices including a visa section, a media lab, library and exhibition spaces for the British High Commission in Uganda

The scheme consists of three buildings, each of which is composed of a concrete frame with a brick masonry envelope and hollow-clay-block floors.

The building runs counter to the direction of the steep site to create a rise from two storeys at the entrance side, through three storeys at courtyard level to four storeys at the lowest end.

Fired clay is displayed in the walls, the roofs and parts of the floor. The bricks in the external wall are laid rough face out, contrasting with the grey-framed glass windows.

The roof of the visa-consular building is also clay tile, but double pitched with a clerestory vent. In each wing of the main building, rooms are arranged in a row off a single-loaded corridor that faces the courtyard, allowing for cross-ventilation. Each room is simple, with a wooden door off the circulation spine.

Data

  • Completed: Aug 2005
  • Sector: Civic
  • Address: British High Commission, Plot 4, Kampala, 7070, Uganda

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