Phasing a Significant Community Project

When St Michael’s appointed CPL Architects to help them to realise their ambitious vision for a Church Centre project in Stoke Gifford, which was to be at The Heart of the Community, they recognised that they were embarking on a significant endeavour. 

St Michael’s are a lively, growing Anglican church in Stoke Gifford, on the northern edge of Bristol. St Michael’s have been able to achieve their ambitious vision by phasing the construction into manageable elements to suit funds raised.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, dedicated the building shell in 2014 and by May, 2015 the first phase was opened.

The balance of internal fit-out elements were then completed in a series of phases to suit available funding as it was raised. The energy efficient design, constructed on the footprint of a dilapidated former Victorian farm, includes a large, double height entrance foyer, reception point and church office, toilet and shower facilities, contemporary triple height auditorium with passive ventilation, LED lighting, flexible seating at ground floor level, tiered balcony with AV facilities, baptistry integrated within the dais, seminar suite, creche, meeting rooms, commercial kitchen, and a suite of offices.