Kent County Cricket Club’s £30m development of its Worsley Bridge Road ground in Beckenham has dramatically enhanced the facilities to make it a modern and multi-functional sports and leisure space.
The development was constructed by Galliford Try and includes an indoor cricket school built to England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Academy standards and a new 2,000-seater spectator stand.
Additional facilities include physiotherapy treatment rooms, a gym and Pilates studio, as well as a conference and banqueting area to seat 160 people with bar and kitchen facilities.
As one of 18 first-class county cricket clubs that make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, and with a history dating back to 1842, the challenge for Delta Balustrades and the project design team at Paul Davis & Partners was to ensure that the staircases and balconies reflected the club’s heritage, while still maintaining the safety of spectators and visitors during match days.
Delta Balustrades provided balustrades totalling approximately 87m for three internal staircases, an internal balcony above the entrance doors and an external balcony overlooking the cricket pitch. Delta’s Orbis range was used throughout all the internal staircases, voids and balcony with powder-coated metal posts and infill panels, providing a robust solution with a long service life.
For the main internal staircase and balcony handrails, a solid light oak handrail from the Delta Balustrades Delamere range was specified by the client to match the existing reception décor. Similarly, the rear staircase required curved handrails around the landings to match the look of the staircase and to ensure the aesthetic feel of the building was consistent throughout.
As a focal point in the building’s architecture, it was crucial that the external balcony not only caught the eye but was also safe to accommodate spectators taking advantage of the elevated view of the cricket field. To solve this, Delta Balustrades provided a Vista handrail and structural glass system with non-standard floor fixings that can resist a uniformly distributed line load of up to 3.0kN/m, as specified by the architect.
Supported by 33mm clear toughened and laminated safety glass in compliance with Part K building regulations, the stainless steel handrail was mounted on brackets to the inside face of the glass and secured in place using a continuous steel fixing bracket along the bottom edge of the structure for added protection from falling, collision and impact.
With responsibility for specification development, design, manufacture and installation of all balustrades and handrails on the development, Delta Balustrades was required to work closely with the main contractor throughout the project to ensure key project milestones were met. The result is a modern, multi-functional building that retains its heritage and meets the demands of a diverse range of visitors.
