The Chocolate Quarter, Keynsham
The development is located next to the River Avon.
The Chocolate Quarter development is at the former Cadbury’s factory buildings which were constructed in the 1920s and are part of the wider Somerdale development on the site.
We were appointed by the St Monica Trust on this scheme following on from our success working with them on other developments in the south west. As part of this appointment, we have advised on internal noise related issues with regards to the Building Regulations Approved Document ‘E’ and space acoustics.
The iconic red-brick buildings are being converted into a state-of-the art retirement community, featuring 120 assisted living apartments and a 105-bed care home offering a range of specialist care at a cost of £60 million.
The proposals include additional office and employment space, and community facilities such as a restaurant, leisure suite, hairdressing salon, pharmacy and GP surgery.
The development is a refurbishment which has required a detailed understanding of the scheme to ensure any retained features and structure do not adversely affect the acoustic performance of the final scheme for Approved Document ‘E’. The addition of the new top floor has also presented a number of noise and acoustic challenges.
With our considerable experience in extra care and assisted care retirement apartments for numerous providers, we provided detailed noise and acoustic advice to achieve the requirements of Approved Document ‘E’.
We worked closely with the architect to help develop the proposals and advise of any risks and limitations of the design at the early stage of the design. By assisting the architect at the early development stage we advised on best practice measures which have reduced the need for acoustic mitigation measures later on.
