IN Brief:
- The preferred scheme contains six self-contained apartments, including three designed for wheelchair users under the M4(3) standard.
- An estimated £300,000 professional services commission will cover surveys, design, approvals and construction procurement support.
- The consultancy procurement is at the planning stage; no main building contractor has been appointed.
Braintree District Council is preparing a £300,000 professional consultancy procurement to develop six self-contained temporary accommodation apartments at Bradford Street, including three properties intended to meet wheelchair-accessible housing requirements.
The preferred layout includes three wheelchair-accessible apartments designed to meet M4(3) standards and three one-bedroom apartments. Staff offices, meeting and interview rooms, cycle storage, refuse facilities and associated external works also form part of the proposed development.
A completed feasibility study has established the initial accommodation arrangement. The council now intends to engage a multidisciplinary consultancy team to validate that work, investigate the existing building, develop the design and secure the necessary planning and statutory approvals.
The £300,000 estimate covers professional services rather than the cost of constructing or refurbishing the accommodation. The council has not appointed a building contractor or established the final capital cost of delivering the six apartments.
Demand for temporary accommodation has increased, with the council identifying a broader range of household support, safeguarding and accessibility requirements. The preferred scheme is intended to provide accommodation better suited to those needs while reducing reliance on costly nightly paid properties.
The proposed development combines residential use with space for staff providing homelessness services. This creates different requirements for privacy, access, circulation and building services within a relatively compact property.
Residents need self-contained living accommodation, while council staff require suitable facilities for appointments and support activities. The arrangement of entrances, meeting spaces and internal routes will influence how the building can serve both functions.
The consultancy commission includes measured building and structural investigations. These will establish the existing dimensions and construction conditions before the proposed internal layout is developed into coordinated architectural and engineering drawings.
Measured surveys are particularly important when existing accommodation is being adapted. Previous alterations may not be fully recorded in historic drawings, while small differences in dimensions can affect whether circulation spaces, bathrooms and accessible facilities can be accommodated.
Structural investigations will determine how the existing building can support any proposed alterations. Changes to walls or openings may affect load-bearing elements, requiring engineers to identify the original construction and the means by which loads are transferred to the supporting structure.
The final design may also need to accommodate new service routes. Changes to residential layouts and the provision of additional bathrooms or kitchens can alter the position and capacity requirements of water supplies, drainage, ventilation and electrical installations.
Utilities and drainage investigations have consequently been included in the proposed consultant’s scope. Their findings will inform whether existing connections can support the planned accommodation or whether alterations to external or internal networks are necessary.
A refurbishment and demolition asbestos survey is also anticipated. Intrusive work on existing buildings can disturb concealed materials, making information about asbestos-containing components essential before the design and construction sequence are finalised.
The accessibility requirements form a central part of the project. M4(3) relates to wheelchair user dwellings, although the applicable regulatory provisions distinguish accommodation that is wheelchair adaptable from accommodation intended to be wheelchair accessible at completion.
The council has identified three apartments as wheelchair-accessible. The design team will therefore need to establish the applicable planning and building control requirements and demonstrate that the completed layouts provide the required standard of access and use.
Wheelchair accessibility affects more than the dimensions of a bedroom or bathroom. Door openings, turning space, kitchens, sanitary facilities, the position of controls and connections to external circulation routes must be considered as part of the overall dwelling arrangement.
Step-free approaches and usable access to shared facilities will also influence the external works. Levels around the building, the position of entrances and the layout of cycle and refuse storage areas must be assessed alongside the internal design.
Energy and environmental assessments form another element of the planned commission. They will help establish the appropriate building fabric, heating, ventilation and other performance requirements for the proposed refurbishment or replacement works.
The existing construction may impose constraints on insulation upgrades or alterations to ventilation arrangements. The design team will need to coordinate energy performance measures with the building’s condition and the requirements of the intended residential accommodation.
The appointed consultants are expected to develop the scheme through the relevant RIBA design stages, with architectural, structural, mechanical and electrical engineering inputs coordinated alongside cost management and statutory approvals.
They will also support procurement of the eventual construction contractor. The development of an adequate tender package requires the design, specifications, surveys and project risks to be sufficiently defined for contractors to price the work on a consistent basis.
Following contractor appointment, the consultancy scope is intended to extend to contract administration and cost management through completion. This provides continuity between feasibility, detailed design and delivery, although the final professional services appointment remains to be made.
The current procurement programme anticipates professional services beginning in February 2027 and running to February 2029. These dates describe the planned consultancy period rather than confirmed construction commencement and completion dates.
Braintree’s immediate priority is to secure the design and engineering support needed to develop the Bradford Street scheme. The proposed six-apartment development remains subject to investigation, design, approvals and a separate construction procurement process.
