Ningbo Home of Staff

The Ningbo Labour Union has named the project the Home of Staff as they see it as a second home for the members they represent. The project sits at the centre of Ningbo New East Town on the edge of a new ecological wetland area forming the new cultural hub of the city. With an eclectic mix of functions, split across two separate buildings, the project is linked by a landscape park stretching over half a kilometre. The Home of Staff provides support, health, education, culture and leisure facilities for almost 3 million Ningbo Labour Union members.

We have designed the Home of Staff as a series of stepped building volumes that are linked by a landscape that rises from a central public park to become a series of accessible green roof terraces. The volumes, which from the air appear like a pixelated image, rise up at each end and form two individual buildings that are connected by a sunken walkway and a series of park pavilions.The Home of Staff contains an impressive list of functions. It has arts and performance spaces, sports, leisure, education facilities and offices – all built on a base of commercial retail and exhibition space. The cultural functions of the building include a 3-screen cinema, a 1,200-seat performing arts venue, an exhibition hall, a Union Staff arts club and service centre, and training and learning facilities for up to 600 students. The sports and leisure functions include an aquatic centre with Olympic-size pool and large-scale wave pool, a full-size basketball court with spectator seating, 2 indoor tennis courts, 10 badminton courts, a fully equipped gymnasium and table tennis centre. Furthermore, the two buildings are linked with a series of retail courtyards and dedicated office space for the Ningbo Labour Union administration.