Race Cottam Associates - Offices Development - Rotherham, Moorgate Crofts

Date: 12 Mar 2008

Sheffield architects have created a new headquarters for a nationwide property firm, which is expected to become a showcase for sustainable green design.

Race Cottam Associates produced designs for an environmentally friendly £5.5 million office complex at Moorgate Crofts, Rotherham, for property developers the Horbury Group.

And Horbury were so impressed they decided to make the offices their permanent headquarters.

The 32,000 sq. ft complex is on the re-claimed site of South Grove School at Moorgate and is one of Rotherham's most striking commercial developments. It is the latest of the Horbury Group's £17 million worth of projects in Moorgate, all designed by Race Cottam.

The new building includes energy saving controls and a sedum roof which will support biodiversity within the site, help filter pollutants from the air and improve insulation.

The complex, due for completion later this year, has already been rated 'good' by BREEAM- a national standard for green construction.

Race Cottam regional director Mark Barker said: "Our vision was for a striking and contemporary new building which will provide a well-managed office environment. We're delighted that Horbury like the development enough to make it their home.

"Race Cottam have a proven track record of working on and around this site. We have recently successfully completed commercial office buildings adjacent to the project with the same client and are working on a number of other schemes in the surrounding area."

Race Cottam has already worked with the Horbury Group to design three office blocks at Moorgate, coupled with 16 luxury apartments, significantly lifting the economic potential of the district.

The site was once a sandstone quarry before production ceased in 1828. More recently it was occupied by the South Grove Secondary School, which was demolished in 2004.

The new building is being constructed using high quality materials to provide a striking building on a prominent escarpment, with views across Rotherham, to the western edges of Sheffield and beyond, as far as the Peak Park.