University of Portsmouth student wins UK competition for net zero community centre design

A UNIVERSITY of Portsmouth graduate has been handed a top award in a UK-wide construction competition.
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Alice Senior, who graduated from the university last year, led the winning team of a UK-wide competition in sustainable construction.

The Timber Development UK University Design Challenge saw more than 150 students from 57 universities participate to design a net zero community centre.

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The alumni, who graduated with a degree in property development, led her team in the competition, a live challenge which took nine months to complete.

The winning team of the construction competition.The winning team of the construction competition.
The winning team of the construction competition.

Students were tasked with designing the community centre, Southside Hereford, to accommodate three partners with net zero aspirations.

These companies were Growing Local CIC, Belmont Wanderers CIC and NMITE.

Entrants then presented their designs to a panel of expert judges during a live two-day event at the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering (NMITE).

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Judges represented both local clients and leading figures in UK sustainable construction.

Alice Senior said: ‘Sustainable development is very important.

‘We must insure that our buildings are built to last, inexpensive to run and also be adaptable for changing uses so that we reduce our carbon emissions and material wastage.

‘We chose to use high quality, low embodied carbon materials and prioritised materials that can be disassembled and used again.

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‘Adaptability of spaces was also important so that the building use can easily change over time instead of building demolished.’

David Hopkins, chief executive of Timber Development UK said: ‘It is evident from each and every student who has taken part in the Timber Development UK University Design Challenge that there is incredible built environment talent emerging from UK universities.’