Transformation of former post office into learning centre

The institution is diverse in its courses, profiles, timetables and group sizes. Together with users, we therefore defined a project that embraces this diversity. Traditionally, the logic is:

PLACE = FUNCTION = USE

To support new learning methods, we abandon this fixed link between place and function. Functions become mobile; people move according to the activity. We create spaces with a strong character, designed for a specific mode of use rather than a fixed function:

PLACE = USE, FUNCTION IS MOBILE

In collaboration with the CPFB, we examined the different uses in detail to define the optimal setting (quiet/noisy , formal/informal, individual/group, large/small, confidential/open, fixed/mobile) and studied ergonomics to determine appropriate spaces and furniture. Participatory programming is essential: users do not always know exactly what bothers them, but they are experts in their work and habits.

Through three workshops with administration, management, lecturers and students, we collected and analysed information, validated space typologies and structured the organisation and relationships between the various zones. On this basis, the actual activity-based design could begin.

The building has had several lives: from post office to UCL teaching facility and later a “school of sound”. Partitioning and acoustic interventions had erased the simplicity of spaces and materials.

The project restores openness by revealing the original structure: heights, volumes and materials. The building was first stripped back: concrete preserved, brickwork cleaned, joinery repaired. The play of daylight through the glass roof blocks onto the beam structure becomes visible again. Circulation is simplified and a large open area at the rear is transformed into a seating zone.

The aim is to restore the building as close as possible to its original state while preparing it for the future. The east façade is opened up to connect the ground floor more directly to the outside space. On the ground floor, a social, open area with reception leads into a multifunctional zone with work alcoves and workspaces. On the upper level, there are collaborative spaces, auditoria, a lab, administrative offices and a recording studio.

Once the materiality and volume had beenrestored , a smooth concrete screed floor was poured to emphasise the robust character. Graphic accents reinforce this: lighter new joinery contrasts with the darker existing elements, and the yellow staircase stands out against the red brickwork. These contrasts highlight the inherent qualities and bring the building back to life.

With this project, we propose an answer to how this place can be adapted to new teaching methods and the diversity of programmes. Our working method also consciously seeks diversity and contrast, mapping activities and uses with a broad range of users. In this way, the former post office is given a new life, oriented towards the future of education and the next generations.