Grosvenor West Building, Manchester Metropolitan University

Based in Manchester, Manchester School of Art was established in 1838. It is the second oldest art school in the United Kingdom.

Grosvenor West Building was opened in 1881 and also contains the Holden Gallery, a public gallery situated at the heart of the building, which has functioned as a gallery since the building was extended in 1898,

Cassidy + Ashton is the lead architect and heritage architect on the refurbishment of the Grade II listed building to preserve the building and ensure it meets the needs of the school’s next generation of artists and design students.

Our design brief includes preparing a ‘life cycle’ project refurbishment that involves fabric repair to the exterior brick and stonework and the roof and rooflights, as well as adding secondary glazing to improve the insulation properties of the 141-year-old building.

The work also includes enhancing accessibility, inclusivity, upgrading and replacing internal heating and lighting systems, and maintaining, enhancing and reintroducing the original heritage assets.

This is a substantial project that will not only draw on our experience as heritage architects, but on our enthusiasm and dedication to play a part in preserving listed properties and making them fit for the next generation of people that will use them.

Manchester School of Art was designed by George Tunstal Redmayne with the later rear addition by Joseph Gibbons Sankey. The School of Art has hosted notable names such as Walter Crane, Sylvia Pankhurst, Adolph Valette and LS Lowry.

It is a privilege to be part of a project that will preserve a monumental building that has inspired creative thinking ever since it was built in the 1880s. The university is very proud of the history behind Grosvenor Building, and we will be working closely with them to ensure it continues to excite and motivate artists and designers of the future.