Benedetti Architects has offered an insight into the new headquarters for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) in London. The Grade II listed building has seen a comprehensive expansion and re-design with a budget of £33 million (USD 42 million).

The resulting 26,500-square-foot revamp includes “state-of-the-art spaces with maximum flexibility, balancing the charity’s educational work with members’ needs and revenue.” The design included accessibility and systems upgrades, including a doubled WC capacity and enhanced fire safety, energy performance, acoustics, thermal comfort, and useability.

Facilities within the building include two theaters holding 227 and 41 seats, respectively, as well as a banqueting hall, four kitchens, multi-purpose event and exhibition spaces, a members’ bar and restaurant area, a new skylit boardroom containing historic materials found during construction, as well as offices and terraces overlooking an adjacent churchyard. The material palette for the building is grounded in pared-down, classic, durable materials, with bespoke detailing that increases in refinement as the building rises.

The project’s most significant intervention is a new top floor that restores and adapts two large Victorian roof light spaces and decorative plasterwork dating from 1883. Considered lost for over 40 years, the historical plasterwork and structures have been enclosed in high-performance smart glazing to create a new usable space with views of surrounding landmarks and gardens. The space also holds Benedetti Architects' 3D printed ‘wearpure.tech’ airborne-carbon reducing screen.

The new headquarters opened its doors to the public in January 2022.

The BAFTA headquarters is one of several recently-completed schemes to feature in our editorial. Last week, we featured an office building in Ho Chi Minh City wrapped in a perforated brick facade, as well as a residence in the Brazilian rainforest, which weaves its way through existing trees. Earlier in June, we published details of Arshia Architects’ Bel Air residence inspired by automotive design in addition to the new Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance.