Background
Richmond University is an American International University, established in 1972. Based in West London across two campuses, the first in Richmond Hill and a second close to the busy Kensington High Street. The University has attracted a number of high-profile students including royals.
Originally established as an American College founded by the social entrepreneur and politician Sir Cyril Taylor, Chairman of the American Institute for Foreign Study (AIFS), Richmond University has been used as the London base for the US Study Abroad programme.
The Kensington campus buildings on St Albans Grove and Ansdell Street were opened in 1978 to accommodate the third and fourth-year undergraduate students as well as all postgraduate students. In March 1988 Kensington campus saw a further expansion on Young Street that was officially opened by Diana, Princess of Wales.
A more recent addition to the Kensington property portfolio is Collingham Gardens, a stunning Grade II Listed building in a quiet and highly desirable tree-lined road in West London which houses final year students. The building oozes character as you approach the building via the original Victorian tiled entrance.
The Venue
Once acquired, the Collingham Gardens site required a comprehensive refurbishment to a very high standard throughout and Cubix was selected to work closely with Sue Lockett, Head of Estates for Richmond American International University, to furnish the entire building and supply robust, yet stylish, contract furniture for all student bedrooms and kitchens.
Comprising of four floors of individual flats the accommodation gives students a feeling of independence – it is about as close as you’ll get to independent living before graduating. The rooms really have a homely and welcoming sense of community about them.
The bedrooms are very spacious compared to many student rooms and have a shared bathroom on each floor. Similarly, there is also a well-equipped, shared kitchen on each floor. There is a large common space in the basement with a communal TV, oversized dining table and comfortable lounge seating which is the perfect place to relax and unwind after a day of studying. To the rear of the property is a bijoux patio area which is ideal for socialising with friends on a summer’s day.
The Project
Cubix provided quality samples of the finishes and furniture prior to specification and after some deliberation, the Austen bedroom range from our Author’s Collection was chosen by the University’s project team. Austen couples contemporary wood grain finishes with a chrome exoskeleton which forms the legs and feet of the design whilst making the furniture particularly hardwearing in severe contract settings.
As we know, students need plenty of storage space. Each student received a single cabin bed with storage drawers, a two-drawer bedside unit, a three-drawer chest of drawers, a wardrobe with two base drawers, a wall mounted shelving unit for books, a study desk and a compact swivel chair. All rooms were space-planned by our in-house Technical Designer, Daniel Beck, who also designed our popular Austen range.
In addition to the contemporary fitted kitchen cupboards, Cubix provided each kitchen with a walnut finish oval dining table and modern dining chairs. In the basement, Cubix manufactured a huge dining table centrepiece that seated twelve students and also supplied all easy seating in the communal lounge to encourage socialising.
The project was professionally and promptly installed by our own skilled installation team supervised by Cubix’s Head of Installation, Garth Catterall, and resulted in the property being opened in good time for its official launch as the newest acquisition within Richmond American University’s estate.