Award-Winning Women’s Rehabilitation Centre Hope Street Features Rationel Windows, Southampton

Location: Southampton

The versatile Rationel Windows are fully exploited at Hope Street, Southampton, an impressive award-winning development designed to create a healing and restorative living space for justice-involved women.

Thames Valley Windows was appointed by a local property developer and architect to design, supply, and install a complete glazing solution for this Award Winning Women’s Rehabilitation Centre, Hope Street, in Southampton.

Snug designed the Hope Street project to BREEAM Excellent standards, promoting sustainability and reducing carbon emissions, which were fundamental to the brief to ensure the windows and doors met stringent requirements.

Our architectural project designer, Liam, worked closely with the architect and developer to identify the right glazing solution. We supplied and installed a full range of aluminium and composite windows and doors sourced from only our most trusted partners, Solarlux, Internorm, and Rationel.

To ensure the rehabilitation centre is truly fit for purpose, the charity One Small Thing worked closely with women who had experience with the justice system to gain insight into what design features can trigger trauma. These views were incorporated throughout the building, from the muted colour palette selected to rounded corners.

The building’s layout fosters a sense of community and also uses natural light and transparency. The communal hub building is designed for modern living. It has open communal living spaces, staff open plan office and a quiet chapel for individual reflection. Large windows and doors allow plenty of natural light to fill the space, creating a peaceful and calm atmosphere inside.

The two-story block of eight shared flats is carefully placed overlooking the courtyard to offer pockets of tranquillity and connection to nature.

Thames Valley Windows worked with the prestigious Snug Architects to supply and install almost 200 windows and doors throughout the buildings.

Hope Street project, comprising of 75 high performance Rationel Windows in total, was an excellent opportunity to showcase the core benefits and quality of the Auraplus composite windows.

The Auraplus system from Rationel is designed using sustainably sourced timber and among the most popular composite windows in the glazing industry. We recommended these be used for the Hope Street project because of the high quality, exceptional craftmanship, weather tightness, and performance of the product, which provides fresh, clean aesthetics.

Product quality and design versatility were the key reasons why Liam specified Auraplus Rationel windows. Liam paid meticulous care and attention to design to ensure the glazing matched the vision of the Snug architect.

Rationel Windows was established in 1954 in Denmark. Over the years, the company has evolved, keeping pace with changing architectural trends and customer needs.

Today, Rationel is synonymous with high-quality, energy-efficient windows and entrance doors that blend iconic Scandinavian minimalism with robust construction and advanced security features.

Rationel windows and doors reputation is built on high quality, exceptional craftmanship, durability, and functionality.

Rationel offers a wide range of double and triple glazed window designs, from modern to traditional, with glazing bar options.Their product range are not just about aesthetics; they are known for their exceptional energy efficiency, contributing to reduced heating bills and a lower carbon footprint.

Rationel Windows are cost-effective and of better quality than many comparable products on the market for large-scale projects. They provide impressive low maintenance and low energy performance with a quality finish.

The sleek, slim, flat frame offers clean lines and a flush finish that maximises natural light and offers a modern aesthetic. It provides peace of mind with Secured by Design status. The frame is also available in dual colour finishes, which was a key part of the desired aesthetic.

The Auraplus system from Rationel met the architects and developers design brief without compromising thermal and acoustic performance. Each double-glazed unit is argon-filled and retains identical sightlines. The slim frame allows maximum glass to enhance daylight to flow throughout the building, creating a light and spacious ambience.

Double-glazed aluminium/timber composite windows with external aluminium frames finished in Moss grey complement the distinctive façade, while the timber interior, finished in traffic white, also enhances the light and contemporary interior style.

Hope Street has been sustainably developed using low-energy design principles that surpass building regulation standards. It was completed in March 2023 and gained media coverage when the building was officially opened by the Her Royal Highness Princess of Wales on 27 June 2023.

RIBA recognised Hope Street’s success, awarding it the‘ 2024 MacEwen Award’ in the Community Support category. It has also been shortlisted for SECBE Awards 2024.

Whether renovating an older country style property or building a contemporary new build, Rationel windows can perfectly balance functionality and style.

If you are interested in viewing the Rationel window range, request an appointment at our Bracknell showroom

Products used:
Rationel Windows

Suppliers:
Architectural Designer: Liam Griffin

Architect: Snug Architects

Snug Architects is known for its dynamic and expressive architecture and has a reputation for delivering intelligent design and innovative projects across the South East and beyond.

Developer:  Chisholm & Winch

Chisholm and Winch, one of the leading and reputed building and refurbishments contractors in UK known for offering most robust design & build services.

Photos: Fotohaus

You may also be interested in reading our blog: Architectural Glazing Specialist for Architects, Contractors and Interior Designers

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