Rural Beach Café

• Location: Silecroft, UK
• Budget: £380k
• Status: Competition
• Type: Public, Community

A proposal for an eco-friendly beach café in the south-west corner of the Lake District National Park which is overlooked by the distinctive Black Combe fell and benefits from panoramic views to the Isle of Man.

Our design separates the front and back-of-house aspects of the building into two pavilions offset in plan with an entrance foyer and exhibition space linking the two. This offset allowed us to create two alternate external terraces offering shelter from the wind – whatever its direction. The taller, more open pavilion houses the main café for 30 covers and a small retail area, each with panoramic views. The lower pavilion contains support spaces including an office, kitchen, servery and toilet facilities.

The design references traditional seaside pavilions and yet is intended to be different in its scale and composition. A layered timber façade and large windows emphasise these characteristics and give the building a proportion and elegance to unmistakably establish it as a new and contemporary community building for Silecroft.