Greater Manchester Courts was to be delivered under a PPP procurement route with the buildings being developed from RIBA stage C to D+ as part of the HMCS bid requirements.
Napper Architects were Lead Architects, developing the scheme for Babcock & Brown as one of the two final bidders up to submitting final tenders and completing bidder interviews, after which the project was put on hold following the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review.
Bolton Courts provided general office and administration facilities in addition to the Courts Service requirements and was separated by a glazed Atrium space on “stilts” to provide a covered entrance to the building.
The building was designed to achieve an excellent BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating and to provide high quality civic facilities under a 25 year lease.
Greater Manchester Courts was a single procurement contract but delivering two separate Court Buildings on sites on Bolton and Salford.
Both buildings each provided eight magistrates courts with Bolton having a further four Crown courts and Salford having a further four County courts.
In addition, the contract included the design of a new 500 space Multi-storey Car Park at Salford to serve the new development, with dedicated secure staff parking in addition to general public parking.
The Salford building provides a key component in the renaissance of the town centre. It provides a lively frontage with good visibility to the public concourse and encapsulated Photovoltaic panels within the main circulation towers.
