Apiary In The Woods

Year | 2016

Location | Ecclessal Woods, Sheffield

Clients | Sheffield Beekeepers Association(SBKA)

‘WoodBee’ is an inspiration crew from the SSOA collaborating with the SBKA(Sheffield Beekeepers Association) on the live project ‘Apiary in The Woods’ located at The Ecclesall Woods Sawmill, operated by the Sheffield City Council since 2006. Sheffield Beekeepers’ Association (SBKA) is a community-based voluntary organization to promote the craft of amateur beekeeping which started in January 2011. The main objectives of the association are: to promote, support and further the craft of amateur beekeeping for all its members; to raise awareness about the importance of bees and beekeeping to the environment.

The process that stretched over six weeks involved initial stages of research that paved way for a framework that outlined the aims and requirements of the client which was closely followed by an intensive period of conceptual design development supported by an open day event which enabled greater participation of community members at the planning stage of the project.

The initial research, study and the design process posed various challenges in terms of the requirements of the client and other stakeholders, the feasibility of the design in the site, cost efficiency and materiality thus demanding a subtle balance in order to protect the best interests of every user group involved in the project, without compromising the fundamental requirements of the beekeepers.

The project aims at enhancing the inter-disciplinary aspects within the site without compromising the basic requirements of the apiary setting thus enabling a holistic development of the site into a community-based resource and research centre. This involves the reorganization of the traffic streamline, the proposal of a designed gateway to the centre, the development of a new block that accommodates a dedicated space for the beekeepers to support and promote their activities, the introduction of a retail arena to facilitate revenue generation and the integration of these disciplines into the ‘Ecclessal Village’.

The design proposal thus serves as a springboard for further development in the future in order to procure funds to support the client in the realization of the project.