Simon Sainsbury Centre | Stanton Williams

The first phase of Stanton Williams’ masterplan for Cambridge Judge Business School has started on site, with the ground breaking ceremony taking place yesterday.

Stanton Williams were commissioned to enhance the School’s existing facilities and create the new 4,790m² Simon Sainsbury Centre. The development will bring together staff, students and visitors in one location so the school can operate efficiently, support future growth and provide additional teaching, office, breakout and dining spaces.

Cambridge Judge Business School was founded 25 years ago on the site of the Grade II listed Old Addenbrooke’s Hospital, in the historic centre of Cambridge. Old Addenbrooke’s Hospital has undergone almost continuous transformation since its construction in the mid-eighteenth century, with the 1860’s main facade by Matthew Digby Wyatt and the 1990’s re-modelling by John Outram, when Cambridge Judge Business School was created.

The design is conceived as an extension to the original Addenbrooke’s Hospital, creating a unified identity for the site by drawing on the character and materials of the nineteenth century building. 

Internally, the building seeks to promote interaction through the provision of generous foyer areas and circulation spaces, creating opportunities for informal meetings and discussion. These spaces extend the foyer areas and stairs which characterise the successful social heart of the existing building. The interiors are marked by a high-quality exposed concrete frame which reflects the solidity of the original buildings, which are revealed within the new connective spaces.

Cambridge Judge Business School is due for completion in 2017. The masterplan also includes a possible second future phase of works which will add landscaping to the School’s forecourt area and further teaching facilities.