Ripon Cathedral Primary School – Worship Room

Client: Grosvenor House Group

Location: Ripon, North Yorkshire

Area: 50sqm

Value: £60,000

Procurement: Traditional

The intention of the refurbishment of an Activity Room into a Worship Room is to create an uncluttered and calming environment within which large and small groups of pupils will be able to engage in contemplative/ meditative thought.

At present this practice is held in the Main Hall, a space where many distractions make it difficult to create and maintain the levels of calm necessary for the pupils to sit in quiet contemplation.

We propose to ‘de-clutter’ the disorganized activity room through selective removal and by nurturing a degree of order through the installation of high-backed seating which will also provide ambient lighting and storage. The repetition of the joinery is a reference to the ordered bays and perimeter bench of Ripon cathedral which helps to create a restful ambience – it also imparts an emphasis of natural materials within the room which with the lighting will produce a calm environment.

Assemblies at the school conventionally begin with the symbolic lighting of a candle. We propose to replicate the quality of the lit candle by shining light through the panelling of the seating and routing abstract patterns within the timber panels to a thin depth. This will cause the wood to glow when the lights are turned on.