First look at Salisbury Plain Heritage Centre

Purcell has been appointed to lead the design team on the Salisbury Plain Heritage Centre project in Larkhill, Wiltshire. The ambition of the centre is to create a sustainable new home to share the heritage of Salisbury Plain and display internationally significant collections. The new image shows Purcell’s proposed design in context.

Describing the design concept, the project lead and Purcell Partner Alasdair Travers commented: “Placing a major new museum on Salisbury Plain in the context of over 5,000 years of human history is both a fabulous opportunity and a serious responsibility. From our first visit we have been inspired by the sheltering nature of the land and the shifting character of the sky and how our designs can bring these two elements together.”

The main museum building will include extensive indoor exhibition space, a shop, restaurant, support areas and visitor amenities. The outdoor areas will include a display arena with viewing terraces, an extensive trench system, a cafe, children’s play area, a community garden for reflection, activity areas with an assault course and a processional avenue.

The fully accessible new building will encourage military-civilian integration, provide educational opportunities and promote Salisbury Plain’s legacy. Purcell, as architects and design team leaders, will design and coordinate the project from inception to completion, following the RIBA Plan of Work 2013 Stages 2-7.

Purcell is highly regarded for their heritage and design work within sensitive and complex sites. The practice has previously completed high profile projects at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth, Tudor House Museum in Southampton, Wells Cathedral, the National Maritime Museum Greenwich and Tower Bridge.

Project Architect Richard Woods added: “We have consciously held a balance: avoiding an excessively intrusive intervention into the landscape, while providing a strong new design to house an internationally significant collection in an extraordinary setting.”