The Imperial War Museum exists to document and educate new generations about the origins and experience of both world wars in the last century.
This important national institution is located in Lambeth Road, just south of the river. The building was originally a hospital but converted to a museum just after the First World War.
We designed , re-planned and project managed a refurbishment of the reception and entrance facilities for the Imperial War Museum, London. The aim of the refurbishment, known as “the Welcome Project” was to improve the visitor experience. During the early stages we met with the Museum stakeholders to establish the performance brief. The first stage was to identify the issues around way-finding, security, exhibitions, cloaks, left luggage, disabled persons access, lighting, museum information and visitor orientation, selling of museum guides, museum donations, IT, access to WCs, night time events, queue management, etc. The briefing process was the most extensive that we have undertaken on any project! The analysis showed that not all of the requirements were possible due to budget and space restrictions. The priorities were centred on the visitor and the project succeeds in creating a feeling of space and gives the facilities a visual clarity. In particular the access was improved for the many war veterans who come to visit the Museum from all over the world.
The Imperial War Museum is a listed building of historic importance. We had to have extensive dialogue with the conservation officer to ensure all the proposed works respected the building fabric and did not take away from the architectural merit of the building.