Carlisle Library

If there’s one thing we’ve learned makes better buildings, it’s empathy. Architecture never happens in isolation—and simply by being interested and engaged, we’ve found it’s possible to open up the conversations that connect a scheme to its clients and community.

We believe that the more constraints there are, the better the architecture. If there aren’t any constraints, we create them. Challenging sites, existing buildings and complex briefs almost always present incredible opportunities for great design.

To limit our environmental impact, we start with what is already there. By manipulating the form and fabric of a building—whether new or existing—we can work with the existing conditions of topography, light and orientation, and harness the natural energy sources offered by air, ground and water.

If a site’s constraints guide the bigger design decisions, then it’s empathy that informs the smaller, social details. These details frame the human narratives that aren’t included in the brief, anticipating specific moments in the users’ lives.

Good architecture is as much about what happens on the building site as it is about what’s on the drawing board. By working alongside contractors as well as clients we can ring-fence the ideas and details that matter, championing quality and sustainability throughout construction.

Carlisle Library

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Work

Carlisle Library
Grade II Listed
Digital Community Learning Hub
Carlisle, Cumbria

Client

Cumbria County Council

Carlisle library is the largest library in Cumbria and busiest in the county in terms of footfall. We are working with Cumbria County Council in its transformation to a digital community hub – integrating a modern learning environment, a hub for cultural activities, a place for immersive experiences and events, a place of historic learning alongside modern library spaces for all.

The library is located entirely within The Lanes – a shopping centre built between 1982 and 1984 over former narrow lanes of houses and shops. The shopping centre is built in the postmodern style – visible in the apple green glazing bars, projecting angled windows and bright yellow ductwork of the library.

Our approach is to reinstate the light and open feel of the library, integrating new services linked together through a rich mix of spaces to sit, read and browse. New ‘lab’ spaces flexibly host and showcase classes and workshops, pushing activities toward natural light and the distinctive two-storey oriel window. Low bookshelves keep sightlines clear in the second floor double height space, with a bookwall spine housing one-to-one spaces, niches for reading and archive storage.