Brixton House is a finalist for the Great New Build Award at this year’s Great British Theatres Awards.

The award recognises newly built theatres and theatre extensions that demonstrate how new architecture can be rooted in place, accessible to all and guided by environmental responsibility.

Designed as a new home for Ovalhouse Theatre, Brixton House brings performance, creativity and community activity to the heart of Brixton. The purpose-built cultural hub includes two fully accessible, flexible auditoria seating 200 and 120 people, seven rehearsal rooms, a public café and foyer, and two floors of creative workspace.

Accessibility and sustainability were central to the design. Both theatres provide flexible, fully accessible performance spaces, with accessible technical facilities and a studio specifically designed to accommodate children with complex disabilities. The all-electric building incorporates rooftop solar generation, biodiverse planting, solar shading, cycle facilities and materials selected for their potential to be recycled.

Brixton House was completed in 2023 and has since received a RIBA London Award and a Civic Trust Awards Highly Commended recognition.

The Great British Theatres Awards take place as part of the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of Theatres Trust, recognising projects that make an important contribution to the future of theatre and cultural life across the UK.

We wish Brixton House good luck for the Awards Ceremony in November.

Organised by Theatres Trust, the Great British Theatres Awards recognise theatres and the people behind them that are making an outstanding contribution to the UK’s cultural life. The awards were launched as part of Theatres Trust’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

Polka theatre is a finalist in Great Community Connection as well as Great Public Space award. The latter recognises theatres with spaces beyond the auditorium that are well loved and well used by their communities. Polka’s Y C Chan PlayDen has been recognised in this category for its role as a welcoming and accessible space within the theatre.

Polka Theatre is a pioneering children’s theatre in Wimbledon, founded in 1979 as the UK’s first venue dedicated exclusively to children. Its mission is to create inspiring, accessible theatre and creative experiences that give every child the opportunity to imagine, explore and express themselves.

Foster Wilson Size undertook a major re-development of the Polka Theatre in 2021. Re-imagining what a dedicated children’s theatre could be, the extensive transformation aimed to improve the quality and functionality of the space, providing a vibrant hub for the local community and beyond.

Hoxton Hall is also a finalist for Great Community Connection, recognising theatres that go beyond their core role to welcome and engage their communities through their buildings, programming and outreach.

Hoxton Hall is a Grade II listed Victorian music hall in East London, built in 1863 and with a long history at the heart of the local community. It works to use arts and creativity to transform lives and build belonging by connecting artists with the diverse communities of Hackney.

Foster Wilson Size worked with Hoxton Hall to restore and renew this important Victorian music hall, improving its facilities and accessibility while carefully preserving its historic character. The project has helped secure the building’s future as a vibrant performance and community arts venue.

We wish them both good luck for the Awards Ceremony in November.

Planning Permission and Listed Building Consent have been granted for the refurbishment and extension of the Grade II* listed Theatre Royal Margate.

Built in 1787 and extensively remodelled in 1874 by Jethro Thomas Robinson, architect of London's Old Vic Theatre, the Theatre Royal is one of Britain's oldest theatres. It is a delightful space with two decorative horseshoe balconies supported by slender iron columns. It was Grade II* listed in 1955.

Following its closure in 2022, the project will bring the theatre back into public use, supporting its future as a thriving venue for the performing arts. The scheme also forms part of Margate's successful Government Regeneration Funding programme, alongside the restoration of the town's listed Winter Gardens.

Working with a specialist team of engineers and theatre consultants, our proposals include essential repairs and upgrades to help secure the theatre's long-term future. The scheme includes a new extension to accommodate much-needed ventilation equipment, together with a new stage entrance, accessible lift and dressing room facilities.

Currently at the top of the Theatres Trust's Theatres at Risk Register, the project represents an important step towards safeguarding this much-loved historic theatre for future generations.

At G Live in Guildford, we reimagined the VIP bar as a layered and atmospheric environment within the live performance venue. We transformed what was previously a stark and undefined space through tone, texture and light rather than physical enclosure. By introducing a darkened ceiling, we shifted the perception of scale to create intimacy, while pendant lighting establishes rhythm and warmth across the room.

We designed the seating into purposefully segmented zones with high backs to create moments of privacy within the open plan. Warm timber flooring and a palette of burnt orange and deep green tones introduce depth and richness.

The bar on the ground floor was conceived as a freestanding piece of furniture, robust in specification yet refined in form, with fluted glass panels making use of the natural light from the window behind and adding texture. Through this intervention, we sought to elevate the experience of arrival, interval and social gathering within the venue.

We are delighted to share that planning permission has been approved for our design for the conversion of a 1930s gymnasium into a new theatre and performing arts centre, alongside a contemporary foyer extension to the Grade II* listed Sacred Hearts School, Hammersmith.

The project supports Sacred Heart’s ambition to expand its performing arts provision, creating a flexible facility for both the school and the wider community. Designed as a self-contained venue, it will provide dedicated teaching, rehearsal, and performance space, with independent access for public use.

A key feature of the scheme is the double-height foyer, that makes use of a laminated timber lattice structure, that leads to a new terrace of rain garden planting. The timber-led approach reduces embodied carbon while creating a warm and natural internal environment. The proposals will deliver a sustainable addition to the school campus, creating a new cultural hub at its heart.

We’re delighted to share that The Waterways, Great Yarmouth has received a Civic Trust Highly Commended Award and a Selwyn Goldsmith Highly Commended Award for Universal Design. Working alongside Allen Scott , The Morton Partnership Ltd and Blakedown Landscapes, we helped transform this Grade II listed park into a vibrant, multi-functional space for both locals and visitors to enjoy. The project blends historic preservation and sensitive modern intervention with restored pavilions and locally thatched roofs

Civic Trust Awards Judges said: “This heritage-led regeneration has preserved the historic charm, securing a sustainable future as a beloved landmark for Great Yarmouth.”

Foster Wilson Size has been commissioned by Lowestoft Town Council to undertake improvements to the Marina Theatre to improve audience access and comfort.

The new extension addresses key deficiencies in the historic theatre, introducing a fully accessible entrance and box office, a wheelchair lift, additional foyer space and additional toilets. The design also creates an accessible connection at all levels between the theatre and the adjacent Zenith Building, which houses a community space, café and offices. Further improvements to the theatre’s seating are also included as part of the Towns Fund Project.

Congratulations to Polka Theatre who were awarded the UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre Award at the UK Theatre Awards 2024 yesterday. The UK Theatre Awards celebrate the very best of theatre across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Southampton City Council has approved our multi-million-pound plans to extend the Grade II Listed Mayflower Theatre—marking a significant step forward in the evolution of this historic cultural venue.

The new three-storey extension will connect the historic theatre with the adjoining administration building, added in 2010. At the heart of the scheme is a new double-height rehearsal studio. The project also includes two fully accessible dressing rooms at stage level, creating better access and functionality.

The University of York has commissioned Foster Wilson Size and Excite Audio Visual to design a state-of-the-art interpretation training suite. Works include a conference room and a suite of interpretation booths, accessible by wheelchair users, for their new Spring Lane building.

The Training Suite consists of several integrated systems that provide a ‘real-world’ discussion and interpretation experience for both students and teachers.