Oaklands

Our Role

BTP acted as Lead Architect, working with Onward Homes, Manchester City Council and specialist stakeholders to create a scheme shaped around older residents’ needs. 

We developed bespoke apartment layouts and coordinated the architectural design with the building’s care facilities and assistive technologies. When the original contractor’s insolvency stalled the project, we worked with replacement contractor Whitfield & Brown to progress delivery while protecting the client’s requirements. 

During construction, we carried out architectural inspections alongside the Clerk of Works, checking workmanship and resolving technical issues. We also helped identify savings while retaining important features, including the interior colour schemes and furnishings that support residents’ comfort and orientation.

Design Development

The constrained urban site needed to accommodate generous apartments, communal facilities and safe outdoor space, with limited parking provision. We used 3D models and visualisations in discussions with planners to explain the proposals and agree an approach suited to the setting. 

Designed around HAPPI principles for older people’s housing, the building brings apartments and communal spaces together around a central service hub and open courtyard. Terraced gardens provide sheltered outdoor space, while carefully positioned shared areas encourage residents to meet naturally. 

Bespoke apartment layouts incorporate circulation loops and dual-access arrangements to kitchens and bathrooms, helping residents move around more easily. Distinctive corridor treatments, colour schemes and signage support wayfinding, while lighting and heating controls respond to residents’ daily rhythms. 

An integrated communications and assistive technology hub allows care systems, lighting and heating controls to be adapted as needs change. The apartments were also designed with future conversion to general residential use in mind. 

A fabric-first approach, informed by Passivhaus principles, improved thermal performance, alongside heating and hot water provided without fossil fuels. 

Outcomes

Oaklands has replaced outdated sheltered accommodation with 36 accessible, self-contained homes that combine independence with readily available care. 

The courtyard layout, terraced gardens and communal rooms balance privacy with opportunities for social contact. Dedicated dementia facilities, clear wayfinding and adaptable technology support a wider range of residents and allow care provision to evolve over time. 

Efficient construction, a well-performing building fabric and adaptable layouts give Onward Homes a development designed for low maintenance and manageable lifetime costs, with flexibility for future use.