A contemporary state-of-the-art Sixth Form Centre for St Helen & St Katharine.

The new building comprises: a new social and separate teaching building connected with a central entrance tower and helical staircase. The social building features a flexible-use hall, common room with adjacent garden, large study room, smaller group rooms and a café/servery.

The teaching building accommodates 9 classrooms, 2 study/breakout spaces, a higher education room and staff offices. The material palette of brick and precast concrete complements the school’s historic architecture and the spatial configuration of the scheme creates a new university-style quad alongside the adjacent library.

We feel that we were very much in the ‘right hands’ working with TSH Architects. They clearly understood what we are striving to achieve with this new building and the spaces designed are a wonderful articulation of our vision for Sixth Form. Arriving in this building feels like you have stepped away from School. It feels a very grown-up, sophisticated building, yet it is also very inhabitable. It is successful because it works with the students and the staff without imposing a different set of behaviours upon them because of its grandness. It is simultaneously very impressive and very ‘us’.

St. Helen & St. Katharine Headmistress Rebecca Dougall

May 2023

Awards: Oxford Preservation Trust Certificate 2023