We are pleased to share news of our recent appointment with Girton College, University of Cambridge.

Gort Scott – working alongside J&L Gibbons and Price & Myers – has won a design competition for a major planned addition to the College. The 9,400m2 New Court project will be the most significant single building project on the College’s main site since its foundation, and will allow the College to accommodate a larger number of undergraduate and postgraduate students in the heart of the College, while improving conference and performance facilities, including an iconic auditorium. With an emphasis on sustainability, health and well-being and connections between people, buildings and landscape, Gort Scott’s successful approach draws upon the College’s inclusive ethos and rich architectural heritage.

Girton College has been a pioneering institution ever since its foundation in 1869 as Britain’s first residential institution offering university-level education for women: a bold step towards women’s full and equal participation in British political, social and economic life. Today the College is co-educational, and is one of the University of Cambridge’s largest colleges with around 550 undergraduate and 300 postgraduate students. The College’s founder, Emily Davies, sought a site with clean air within a natural setting on the edge of Cambridge. This enduring context, alongside the College’s strong sense of community and values of excellence, inclusivity and sustainability, has informed Gort Scott’s approach.

The New Court project will be the latest in a series of higher education projects by the practice including St Hilda’s College, Oxford and St Catharine’s College, Cambridge.