Arts Council Funding Announcments

Responding to the news yesterday that the Building Exploratory will no longer receive regular funding from the the Arts Council, chief Executive Nicole Crockett said:  

“We are disappointed that Arts Council England has taken the decision not to continue funding the Building Exploratory. We are overwhelmed by demand from schools and local education authorities who recognise the value of our programmes. Our emphasis on creative learning, alongside our focus on developing a sense of place with some of the most diverse and disadvantaged communities in the UK, has made us one of the pioneers of the Big Society.

Our extensive programme of engagement has consistently delivered real results, promoting local partnerships between schools, community groups and artists, and helping to nurture a shared appreciation of the local environment. The Building Exploratory has created an important model for many other organisations, demonstrating how to effectively engage with children and young people.

It is essential that significant progress is made to ensure that local people are involved in shaping sustainable communities in areas, like East London, that are undergoing radical change. We will continue to seek new partnerships and new sources of funding in order to continue developing and extending this important work.”

Refurbish: The life and times of a tower block

14th May 2011, 10.30 - 12.30 at The Building Exploratory

Learn more about the history of tower blocks, see our own refurbished model, and then go on a guided tour of the Holly Street Estate. FREE. Book by calling 020 7729 2011 or emailing mail@buildingexploratory.org.uk

This event is part of Discover Hackney's Adult Learners Week

Dalston Square Time Capsule

This month we are delighted to be working on a project commissioned by hackney Council Cultural Services Department working with Holy Trinity and Convestone Primary Schools on a time capsule project for Dalston Square.

Pupils from the schools will work with artists, a photographer and a poet to record the redevelopment of Dalston Square, creating plaster casts, images and text which will go into the time capsule which will be buried in Dalston Square in May.

Hertford Road Development

More drilling, more digging and some piling. 

Transformers Grant

The Building Exploratory has been awarded a Transformers grant, funded by National Lottery Funding through the Olympic Lottery Distributor and managed by ELBA.

The Transformers grant programme is directing nearly £1 million of funding to communities in the five Olympic Host Boroughs over the next two years. The grants are awarded to projects that really make a difference in people’s lives, particularly by those communities most affected by their proximity to the Olympic venues.


For Transformers we are creating an intergenerational project based in Bromley by Bow, with a focus on the rich heritage of the route from Aldgate to the Olympic Park. Keep an eye out for more details coming soon via our website. 

Architecture Centre Network: Knowledge Exchange Tour 2011

Later this month the Architecture Centre Network is leading a delegation of its members' built environment education (BEE) professionals on a knowledge exchange tour of Japan, hosted by Hokkaido University and supported by the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation.

Our Head of Education, Janet Clark, will join colleagues from Bristol Architecture Centre, The Solent Centre for Architecture and Design and the Architecture Centre Network in representing the pinnacle of BEE professionalism and innovative practice in the UK.

Hosted by Dr Sakai, of Hokkaido University, the visit will be based in Tokyo with travel to architectural education centres across Japan.

The UK delegation will present its BEE pedagogy and activities to Japanese educationists and thought-leaders from across the BEE sector; will visit a variety of architectural and built environment organisations and education providers; and will engage in knowledge exchange workshops, seminars and lectures with the same.

You can also follow Janet's Japan trip blog at http://tbejapantrip2011.blogspot.com

Hertford Road Development

The demolition and work preparation of the site opposite our offices continues... Over the course of January they have drilled up the concrete foundations, put the big bits through a concrete crusher and moved around some huge piles of rubble. You can also start to see them digging the foundations for the site at the other end of the basin.