Way finding

'The overarching goal is to Preserve, Strengthen and Grow the ‘cohesive community’ for the future generations of Resolven.
Why? To celebrate the town’s heritage. Resolven and the surrounding villages of Neath were built on community spirit. The resilience they have carried through the decades has made Resolven the tight-knit community it is today. It has faced continuous hardship over the years, with the mining crisis, closure of dominant factories and loss of businesses. But the village has never lost its spirit. The Miner’s Welfare Hall was built in the 20s from the earnings of the local miners. The building was to give back to the community, housing the town’s library, dance hall and auditorium. A place to learn and socialise.

Why? For future sustainability. The Wellbeing Act 2015 (Wales) states that public bodies need to work better with people to implement long-lasting, positive, change for future generations. One of 7 Well-being goals is to achieve a ‘cohesive community’. Resolven’s community already embodies most of the criteria for a ‘cohesive community’. This is evident through the Miners’ Welfare Trustee Committee. All members were born and raised in Resolven and their primary goal is to restore the Welfare to give back to the community and share its memories with the younger generation.
An important exercise to develop a sustainable programmatic strategy was to understand what Resolven already provides. This was inspired by the town’s culture in not believing in constraints, only opportunities to make positive change.
The proposed new programme looks to Preserve, Strengthen, and Grow the cohesive community of Resolven. It will celebrate the town’s heritage and deliver the trustees goal of growing the Welfares’ social inclusion to strengthen the community spirit.

The main programme to align with this philosophy will be a Podcast Studio. It will be the symbolic statement to celebrate the town’s heritage. Alongside being the main income revenue for the Welfare. The podcast will strengthen community cohesion with easy access for residents from the comfort of their homes. Additionally, this community network can expand with participation from the wider communities in the Neath Valley. An example of how the Podcast Studio can give back to the community include ‘History Hour’ where locals can reflect on stories of Resolven.
‘Preserve, Strengthen and Grow’ not only determined the types of activities in The Welfare but it determined the architectural language too. How can the architectural language PRESERVE the existing structure? How can the spatial arrangement STRENGTHEN the existing programme? What spaces can be used to GROW the collaboration between different generations in Resolven?
This philosophy has also determined the architectural identity of exploring the ‘old vs new’. The technical exploration investigated how modern methods of construction (DfMA) can be paired with the existing structure to achieve a sustainable design. Alongside being a tectonic representation of the growing collaboration between the younger and older generation.

Furthermore, the technical imagination explored how light could be manipulated to celebrate the Welfare’s heritage. With interpretations from Peter Zumthor’s experiential work, the exploration went beyond the ‘play’ of light by investigating the relationship and benefits of using both natural and artificial light. It explored how both forms can create wayfinding, change moods and alter the quality of a space.
The approach and entrance into The Welfare was the main journey of exploration. Users will experience the relationship and change between natural and artificial light, looking at how intensity, direction, colour and quantity alter a space.