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  • ‘Order…Order’… in the transformation of a Courthouse to a sumptuous 5* Boutique Hotel

    Selectaglaze helps turn a timeworn draughty Courthouse into a warm and tranquil boutique hotel.

    It was once a building where juries deliberated and judges delivered sentences, the Police inspected crimes and placed criminals under arrest. However, this magnificent Grade II Listed Magistrates Court and Police Station on Old Street, has been converted and given a fresh lease of life after a period of neglect and now stands as a sumptuous 5* boutique hotel.

    Built back in 1903 by John Butler in the Edwardian Baroque style, Old Street Courthouse was a daunting building containing two Courthouses and offices. An adjacent wing housed cells, accommodation for a married officer and on floors above was accommodation for forty single officers, a mess hall and rooms for laundry and boot cleaning. The buildings were in use from 1903 until 1996 and the police station was operational until 2008.

    The building has been restored to its former splendour, as well as adding a new bedroom block which sits behind the front elevation, the basement was renovated to provide space for a gym, swimming pool, bowling alley and a screening room.

    To change this Grade II Listed building from a Courthouse to a hotel, careful consideration had to be given to find ways to improve the thermal performance as well as mitigating the ingress of noise from the busy streets outside, to create a warm and peaceful haven for guests.

    As the building is Listed, the original primary windows could not be removed; so Selectaglaze was approached by the principle contractor McAleer and Rushe to design and provide a solution for the vast range of different style windows. A total of 106 units were installed including curved, raked, casement doors and a beautiful double floor height feature window which was 5.287m high and 2.045m in width. The circular windows on the top floor required particular care and a bespoke fixing method for installation had to be created to meet the client’s requirements. All units were finished in white and matched to the existing frames to make them as unobtrusive as possible.

    Secondary glazing is an independent window installed on the room side of a building, which reduces noise ingress creating a quieter environment and a reduction of 45dB is easily achievable. It not only effectively reduces external noise, but can also virtually eliminate draughts and aids in retaining the heat of a building, reducing heat loss by up to 50%.

    As it is a reversible adaptation, it is often the only solution to enhance poor performing primary windows in Listed properties and is accepted by most heritage bodies.

    With great attention to detail paid to all aspects of the design and build of this magnificent conversion, Courthouse Hotel, Shoreditch, is currently on target to achieve a BREEAM ‘Very Good’ rating.

    Selectaglaze is the specialist in the design, manufacture and installation of secondary glazing, with fifty years’ experience and has held the Royal Warrant since 2004. It has a wealth of experience working on all building types from new build hotels to Listed Town Halls.

    For further information, literature and test results, please contact Selectaglaze on 01727 837271/e-mail:enquiries@selectaglaze.co.uk or visit: www.selectaglaze.co.uk

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