Introduction

With work recently completed on the final phase of Bath & North East Somerset Council’s new Keynsham Recycling Hub, Stephen Poole has been reflecting on this complex project and the key drivers behind the design and its outcomes.

Project Objectives: A Consolidated Facility

Bath & North East Somerset Council is not alone in facing challenges in meeting its responsibility to provide a recycling service for its residents. A growing population and changing waste legislation, among other factors, meant that modernisation and expansion of their dispersed and outdated facilities was required. This Keynsham Recycling Hub project sought to consolidate many of these operations to one site to improve operational efficiencies and increase capacity. The existing recycling facility at Pixash Lane was identified as being most suitable for expansion along with the surrounding land that was allocated within the Local Plan.

The completed development incorporates a public recycling centre, trade waste recycling, material sorting facility, waste transfer station, fleet workshops and supporting office spaces, as well as extensive fleet vehicle parking. With such a variety of functions as well as boundary constraints, the layout required careful consideration to allow for safe, efficient operation and to minimise circulation.

Bath & North East Somerset Council declared a climate and nature emergency in 2019. The new facility needed to respond to this – not only in its processes by providing opportunity to reuse and recycle materials, but operationally too. Improved efficiencies (for example, reducing vehicle movement between sites) would help with reduction of operational carbon. There was also a requirement for the development itself to be sustainable from providing thermally efficient accommodation to using on-site renewable energy generation.

Design Strategy – Promoting Recycling

Recycling is at the heart of the development and the recycling centre is its public face. With 20 bays, this two-storey facility provides increased capacity for residents to recycle a greater variety of waste more easily than ever before. The raised gantry design provides clear separation between public and operational areas, making it safer to use.

The lower ground level houses a dedicated re-use shop, which has proved extremely popular with the public. A treasure trove for thrifters, it offers a plethora of opportunities to purchase donated items ranging from sofas to cycles. This initiative demonstrates how a circular economy can be incorporated into public facilities, generating income instead of landfill.

Elsewhere on the site, the material recovery facility features state-of-the-art sorting equipment. A series of conveyors transfer bulked waste from storage bunkers, into baling machines where it is compacted ahead of onward transport to processing sites. Training Rooms have capacity to host groups and school visits - helping to educate the public about the importance of recycling and the processes that go into waste separation and recovery.

Design Strategy – Materials

The building compositions are simple and bold, intended to be a contemporary take on traditional industrial architecture. A recessive dark grey colour palette was chosen as the base finish to the external cladding which is intended to minimise visual impact from the wider Avon Valley. The north elevation of the material sorting facility, the largest building on the site, features several shades of grey cladding, intended to break up its mass. Concrete walls have been used in vulnerable areas, with additional barrier protection used to separate pedestrian and vehicle routes across the site.

Colour accents and softer material finishes were added to key areas, particularly around public facing areas, with timber cladding and local blue lias stone. Green spandrel panels highlight the offices.

Green Infrastructure

The perimeter of the site features extensive soft landscaping with a variety of habitats provided including grassland wildlife corridors, an attenuation pond and bat house, providing a 17% biodiversity net gain (BNG) for the project. New trees help screen the development from sensitive views, whilst ornamental planting along the main frontage enhances the street scape.

Energy Efficiency and Generation

The new purpose-built office building significantly improves on operational carbon and energy efficiencies compared with the facility it replaced, with a well-insulated envelope and solar shading to manage heat gains. User comfort and welfare is considered throughout the site, with increased day-lighting and artwork enhancements.

The extensive roof space accommodates 3,800sqm solar panels providing sufficient output for the development to be zero carbon on all regulated energy. Rainwater harvesting collects water from roofs to be used for cleaning vehicles and irrigation, whilst sustainable drainage solutions support biodiversity whilst managing the attenuation of run-off on the site.

Active travel for both staff and users is encouraged, and B&NES have provided dedicated cycle routes and parking to facilitate this. Electric vehicle charging has been provided, with future proofing for additional charging points as B&NES continue to decarbonise their fleet.

Conclusion

Bath & North East Somerset Council’s investment in this state-of-the-art facility in Keynsham is a testament to their wider commitment to sustainability. As well as improving user experience, the scheme has directly addressed several environmental matters, from generating green energy to trying to reduce landfill; optimising waste flows to providing green corridors. Waste legislation and recycling technologies are continually evolving and it is hoped that the flexibility and capacity built into the facility will allow it to serve Bath & North East Somerset residents for many years to come.

‘Thanks to the dedicated work of SRA, who led the design and consulting team in collaboration with B&NES Council’s Project and Waste Management teams and Principal Contractor Farrans, Keynsham Recycling Hub has been a huge success, winning plaudits and garnering interest from a host of other local authorities and other organisations from the Waste Management and Recycling industry.’ - Ian James, Bath & North East Somerset Council

Key Project Team Members. Andy Battle, Hilary Blake, Fred Barnett, Stephen Poole

Photography: Sean Mihael, Andy Battle, Farrans Construction

Diagrams: SRA

Client: Bath & North-East Somerset Council

Architect: SRA Architects Ltd

Contractor: Farrans Construction

Project Manager: Gleeds

Quantity Surveyor: Aecom

Structural & Civil Engineer: Campbell Reith Hill Consulting Engineers

MEP Engineer: E3 Consulting Engineers LLP

Planning Consultant: Planning Sphere

Highways Consultant: Miles White Transport

Landscape Architect: Greenhalgh Landscape Architects

Ecology Consultant: Ethos Environmental Planning

WEP Consultant: Sol Environment

EIA Consultant: Entran Environment & Transport Consultants

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