Level Best Art Cafe, Dacon Trust
Project Overview
Project: Extension & Remodelling Works to Create New Café, Art Gallery & offices
Client: The Dacon Trust
Contract value: £968k
The Dacon Trust provides work and life skills training to support adults and young people with learning disabilities. Having previously operated a thriving café, art studio and art gallery in rented premises, the social enterprise charity, identified a former a former butchers premises (Rookery House) with residential accommodation above, which would enable them to expand and enhance their provision in a permanent facility – the Level Best Art Café.
Daniel Connal Partnership was appointed to provide Quantity Surveying and Party Wall services on the scheme which was designed by Shape Architecture, who also acted as Contract Administrators. The main contractor on the scheme was TJ Evers.
The Level Best Art Cafe occupies a prominent position in a conservation area, surrounded by Grade II listed buildings. The new design comprehensively remodelled and extended the corner plot, opening up the dark, cramped internal spaces of the original building whilst retaining the characterful existing façade.
Level Best Art Cafe, Colchester
The main challenge on this project was the constrained location, a corner plot with occupied neighboroughing buildings either on the site boundary or physically adjoining the premises, together with stringent planning conditions. Daniel Connal Partnership worked closely with the Trust, the contractors and architects to overcome these issues successfully.
The building now offers light, bright, welcoming spaces, with level access and wide doorways. The ground floor accommodates a spacious café, kitchen, gallery and shop area. While on the first floor there is an art studio with state of the art and graphic design equipment, a multi-purpose room, a social space for trainees, offices and admin space. The new design also incorporates a lift and the extension includes a green roof.