“The University of Exeter opened the doors of an exciting and unique new building on it’s Streatham Campus in December 2024, The Sarah Turvill Multifaith Centre, which was constructed by Willmott Dixon in 14 months.
Located in the heart of the campus, the new, purpose-built Centre promotes inclusion and respect for diverse faiths and beliefs, while fostering a sense of community, encouraging connections and inter-faith collaborations and is a space for quiet reflection, prayer and contemplation for all.
This building is unique in that it brings together carefully designed dedicated Muslim prayer space and washing facilities (wudu) with a multifaith room for other faith and worldview groups, as well as quiet space alongside both indoor and outdoor social spaces.
The space provides a dedicated home for the University’s Multifaith Chaplains who serve the whole community, uniting 14 faith groups and a student population representing over 150 countries.
A number of students have commented on how the new building has provided them with a ‘home’ at university, a safe and welcoming space that they know is inclusive and welcoming to all.
Over 30 student and colleague groups and societies make use of the space on a regular basis and the building is booked for activities and events on average 49 hours per week.
Sustainability and reducing carbon emissions have been paramount in the design, construction and operation of the building. The innovative techniques have resulted in the building achieving PassivHaus Certification (an internationally recognised high standard of energy efficiency, carbon reduction and air quality).
The building has been constructed using low carbon materials. The use of low energy technology, such as air source heat pumps, further reduce carbon emissions from the operation of the building, and a series of roof mounted PV panels take advantage of the building’s sunny location to provide a zero carbon energy source.
Careful consideration and respect was also given to the cultural and religious importance of the space. Throughout the project, the team consulted with stakeholders representing the building’s future residents and users, as well as students and university colleagues.
The finished building looks striking and creates an island of calm within a busy area of Streatham Campus. Our student’s and colleagues are already making use of the facility and enjoying the benefits of this dedicated community space in which everyone’s beliefs are valued.
The Southern Construction Framework, (SCF) was instrumental in the delivery of this project.
The need for this building was well overdue, with the existing faith facilities proving to be unfit for purpose, being dispersed across campus, providing limited flexibility in use and not accessible to all users.
SCF provided a robust and trusted framework to enable the University to quickly access the construction supplier market.
Given the high sustainability aspirations for the building, the University identified the need for a specialist and highly skilled construction partner. This is where SCF came into its own, already having experienced and verified suppliers embedded within their Framework.
SCF assisted the University in identifying and selecting suitable candidates through a competitive selection process.
Willmott Dixon were selected and operated in a true partnership manner, to successfully delivering the University’s first PassivHaus building, helping the University along their journey to achieving their sustainability objectives.”
