Brighton Table Tennis Club
Transforming an empty commercial space into a new community sporting facility
Project Information
Project: Conversion of a commercial unit into a table tennis club
Client: Brighton Table Tennis Club
Location: Brighton
Scope: RIBA Stages 0-7
Status: Complete
The brief
Brighton Table Tennis Club is a charity that prioritises working with people who have least access but would benefit most from playing table tennis. It has over 1250 users which include people with learning disabilities, young people from the Brighton Travellers site, Looked After Children, people with physical disabilities, people from the LGBT community and young asylum seekers. The club is the world’s first recognised Club of Sanctuary, for its work with refugees. They run over 200 tables across the city in parks, squares, schools, sheltered housing schemes, a centre for homeless people, sports centres and a psychiatric hospital. We also work in three prisons outside the city.
Further to the success of the Fitzherbert Community Hub, we were asked to work again with the Brighton Table Tennis Club to convert the ground floor commercial unit of a block of student accommodation into a second club space, within the heart of Molscoomb in East Brighton.
Our Approach
The commercial unit was an awkward L-shape, so we focused on establishing the flow through the space and it's welcome. Bearing in mind that many of the intended users of the space may feel apprehensive in entering the building or may be there for other reasons than to play table tennis, we moved the front entrance away from the central doors. This enabled the community kitchen to be located straight away, giving a sense of reassurance and space away from the sport. Toilets were located behind here, with all loos being non gendered.
Whilst there was a decent area to work with, the height of the unit was challenging, especially when considering the needs of table tennis. Using the Sport England guidelines as the starting point, we maximised the number of table with the Best Practice playing area. The colour scheme also met sport England recommendations, and the Club were able to have the playing floor covering gifted to them.
The project was 100% grant funded through the London Marathon Foundation.
Outcomes & Impact
The Moulsecoomb site acts as an intergenerational hub focusing on community building, reducing isolation, and breaking down social barriers. For example, the new space has allowed for the development of three thriving women’ sessions, with local residents commenting on how welcoming the space is, enabling people to sit and chat as well as play. A new "para hub" is being developed for people with physical and learning disabilities and the Club also delivers after-school clubs for local schools, including Moulsecoomb Primary, Fairlight, and BACA (Brighton Aldridge Community Academy).
In partnership with the Real Junk Food Project, the Moulsecoomb site has a community fridge and offers cookery workshops.
