Construction begins on Jodrell Bank visitor centre in Cheshire

Work has started on the First Light Pavilion, a new visitor centre at the Jodrell Bank observatory in Cheshire. It will be the first concrete dome construction in the UK for over 25 years.

The development follows the completion of the LABC award-winning SKA (Square Kilometre Array) Headquarters at Jodrell Bank, designed by London based company Hassell Ltd.

Jodrell Bank was founded in 1945 and forms part of Manchester University, in recognition of the international significance of its science heritage; Jodrell Bank became a World Heritage Site in January 2018. The development of the visitor centre has been 11 years in the making.

The total project value of £20.5M has been funded by The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport with additional funding from central government.

Building a concrete dome...

Manchester University appointed Hassell for the design of the First Light Pavilion maintaining the working relationship already built previously between the company and Cheshire East Council’s building control team.

Members of the team attended monthly design meetings at both pre and post application stages and a progress tracker was used through to building regulations approval in July 2019. Early approval gave the contractor Kier additional time to plan and work on the development of bespoke construction techniques for the dome. The company have planned a construction programme of 18 months to deliver the project.

The visitor centre will house a stunning new exhibition and engagement space, incorporating the original fabric of the 1957 dish of the telescope, an auditorium devoted to displaying immersive digital presentations, an education hub and a new café.

The spectacular building will be fully grassed over to submerge into the surroundings of the Cheshire countryside with cut-outs of the dome located for an entrance foyer and exterior seating area for the café.

The circumference of the dome will be an exact match to that of the Lovell Telescope and will offer 8,000 square feet of floor space reaching 7m at its highest point. It’s estimated that a total of 1,800m3 of concrete will be used during construction. 

Sub-structure works and essential inspections continuing during COVID-19 lockdown

Sub-structure works have continued during the current lockdown period with the building control team carrying out essential inspections of foundations, drainage and ground floor preparations, using video inspections for other elements.

The fully managed inspection framework is allowing progress to continue and ensures stage by stage compliance with requirements whilst following government guidance and social distancing restrictions.

Construction is currently moving at pace with completion due in 2021.

Also read Civicance Ltd changes back to Cheshire East Building Control (members' website.)