Queen’s Cross Church

Queen’s Cross Church in Aberdeen is located at the convergence of Albyn Place and Carden Place in the city’s West End. The Victorian Gothic, A-listed building has a rich individual character, referencing motifs from a number of architectural styles.The original intention of the project, in gestation for many years, was to reorganise and improve the facilities and in doing so, further promote the Church’s role in the local community. Like many similar structures where the complex of spaces has grown over time, there is a lack of clear organisation, limited by contrived circulation, inflexible rooms and inadequate services. In addition many Victorian Church buildings have poor accessibility and present a relatively anonymous image to the outside despite imposing grandeur.Queen’s Cross Church is no exception. The key project issues were:• Poor access and no obvious main point of entry• Limited sense of welcome and visibility into the church• Constrained internal organisation, poor legibility throughout• Inflexible multi-purpose spaces• Outdated servicesThe project successfully tackles all of these issues and transforms Queen’s Cross into a welcoming, vibrant and very popular destination in the community, changing the perceptions of the building itself and re-energising the relationship between the congregation and their Church.