The Barton Science Centre Brochure

Barton Science Centre Tonbridge School TRANSFORMING THE UK’S FIRST PURPOSE-BUILT SCHOOL SCIENCE BUILDING

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Foreword A world-class hub for teaching, learning, innovation and discovery Tonbridge’s state-of-the-art Barton Science Centre, which opened in the Spring of 2019, puts science and technology at the very heart of the school. One of the most ambitious developments to happen on the campus since the first science building was constructed in 1887, the three-storey centre combines new classrooms and latest technology with many original architectural features.

Named after British organic chemist Sir Derek Barton, an Old Tonbridgian who won the Nobel Prize 50 years ago in 1969, the Centre places Tonbridge at the cutting edge of school science.

It helps the school to realise its ambitions of stimulating future generations in their studies and inspiring many to embark on scientific careers.

Bill Burnett, Tonbridge School’s Head of Science says; “We believe very strongly in two things. Firstly, that in an increasingly technological society facing all sorts of urgent global challenges, every young person needs to be equipped with a good understanding of science. Secondly, to meet those global challenges, we need new technologies based on a new generation of young scientific minds. Tonbridge, as an institution, wants to help inspire that new generation. To help achieve this we have built a Centre that is innovative, fun and inspirational for pupils and teachers alike, and which will stimulate pioneering approaches to teaching and learning. Science will be at the heart of the school, both literally and figuratively.”

The Departments of Chemistry, Biology and Physics enjoy expanded facilities, including new laboratories and classrooms.The Barton Science Centre includes a flexible central atrium space for lectures and exhibitions, an interactive periodic table, a TV wall, a bee hive, a roof garden, a greenhouse, space for long-term projects, three libraries and numerous small breakout and study spaces, to name just a few of its features.

The school intends that the Centre will provide a wider public benefit as a regional hub and centre of excellence. Tonbridge plans, for instance, to expand its popular ‘Science for Schools’ outreach programme for local primary and secondary pupils, as well as to stage regular public lectures, and offer teacher training seminars and a variety of other events.

Bill Burnett Head of Science

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Overview “Respect for tradition and an openness to innovation are equally valued...”

Tonbridge School Ethos

Tonbridge School is home to one of the leading science departments in the country with superb pupils, dynamic staff and great resources.

The school consistently gains exceptional science results at GCSE and A-Level and there is a high success rate for STEM applications to universities. For 130 years, the science building provided boys with fantastic learning facilities, but in this time science has advanced in directions never imagined in 1887.

Areas of Physics, Chemistry and Biology that weren’t even dreamed of now form part of the core curriculum, and the distinction between the sciences has blurred. Beyond school, science is all about ‘crossover’ subjects such as earth science, physical Chemistry and Biochemistry. Modern scientists may be specialists in their field, but they work together across disciplines, understanding that few things make sense when considered in isolation.

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The way science is taught has also changed substantially. Learning in the 21st century is characterised by an emphasis on understanding rather than an ability to recall facts and figures. Tonbridge boys already engage extensively with technology and they expect it to be used in school.

These technologies include the use of tools such as computer simulation, robotics, GPS and the use of interactive whiteboards.

Pupil numbers at Tonbridge have also increased substantially from around 450 boys in 1894 to 780 in 2018.

The science building required significant remodelling to respond to these changes in scientific development, learning methods and increased student numbers.

BDP hosted a number of workshops with science staff to develop the brief and inform design development. Through this process, the school identified their requirements for a new science department.

The school now have a science building that is: • Flexible to meet current needs efficiently • Adaptable to allow reconfiguration as needs change • In itself a teaching resource • An environmentally aware building – one which monitors itself • An exhibition tool for science to boys and others in the school community and beyond.

The design for the new Science Centre was developed to provide an exciting and inspiring series of spaces for the teaching and learning of science in the 21st century.

The decision to refurbish and extend the existing science building as opposed to building on a green field site is in keeping with Tonbridge School’s model of incremental development and maintains science at the heart of the school. The design was intended to build on the rich layers of history and traditions of the school whilst looking to the future and inspiring boys to study science at A-Level and beyond. The new extension to science takes a prominent position on the High Street, allowing the school to become more transparent to the public and to also demonstrate the school’s commitment to innovation.

The School’s brief was to: • Challenge the current teaching and learning paradigms • Celebrate and facilitate high level achievement in Science • Help teachers to show pupils new ways of working and inspire students beyond the curriculum The School would like boys to be able to: • Carry out original research • Be creative with science • Collaborate with other boys, staff, departments, Scientists and also the wider community • Gain access to the best STEM undergraduate courses • Choose a wide range of STEM careers

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William T C Beckett

Zoologist

Engineer & General

Millis R Jefferis

Engineer & Pilot

John Gorham

1823-28 (1814-1899)

Carl F A Pantin

Judde House 1947-51 (1933-1998)

Pharmacologist

William Rivers Day Boy 1877-80 (1864-1922)

Sir

Arthur Marshall OBE DL

Hillside 1918-22 (1903-2007)

Norman Heatley Parkside 1924-29 (1911-2004)

The original Tonbridge Science Centre was the first purpose-built school science building in the country. In an era when most schools thought science a suitable subject for those not gifted enough to study classics, Tonbridge was nothing short of revolutionary.

Colin Patterson

Judde House 1913-17 (1899-1967)

Psychologist

Engineer

Ferox Hall 1900-05 (1886-1960)

Dr

Judde House 1938-43 (1925-2017)

Park House 1912-17 (1899-1963)

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Doctor

Charles G B Garrett

Manor House 1964-68 (1950-2018)

David R Pye

Ferox Hall 1786-90 (1777-1852)

Palaeontologist

Physician

Peter Fisher

Maj.-Gen. Sir

John George Children

Day Boy 1877-80 (1862-1956)

Physician

Manor House 1932-35 (1918-1998)

Biochemist

Derek H R Barton

Scientist

Chemist

Engineer

A History of Science

Ernest Basil Verney Day Boy 1910-13 (1894-1967)

The vision shown by the school and the governors paid off and Tonbridge has had a proud tradition of science at the highest level ever since.

Notable alumni include Norman Heatley, who was a Parkside boy from 1924 to1929. Penicillin was, famously, discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928, but it was Heatley who cracked the secret of how to purify and mass produce it during the 1940s and his work is directly responsible for saving the lives of millions.

Sir Derek Barton was in Manor House between 1932 and 1935. He won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1969 for his work on determining the shape of chemical isomers, paving the way for much of modern Chemistry and applications such as drug design.

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Exploded axonometric of the proposals for the new Science Centre

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Design Overview In addition to providing both new and refurbished laboratories, teaching classrooms and prep rooms, the project included a number of other key spaces:

• Breakout spaces – areas centred around the atrium for informal teaching, small group meetings and independent study.

• The Atrium – a large, flexible space that hosts an array of different events and activities such as lectures, exhibition, installations, group experiments, scientific demonstrations, performances and outreach events.

• Outdoor learning – a greenhouse located on the roof for teaching use, alongside bespoke planter designs.

• Central staff office – previously Physics, Chemistry and Biology each had their own offices, a central staff office was provided to enable enhanced collaboration between the sciences.

• Project lab – whilst not used for regular teaching, this offers space where long term experiments and research can be carried out by boys.

The Barton Science Centre is arranged over three floors. In order to retain the traditional identity of the sciences, Physics, Biology and Chemistry continue to occupy separate floors. The existing building was extended on the north elevation.

A central atrium links the ground, first and second floor within the footprint of the existing building. This atrium space hosts a wide range of events and activities.

The labs, classrooms and prep rooms wrap around the edge of the central space with generous internal glazing to maintain a visual connection between spaces.

The accommodation is arranged as follows: • Ground floor –Physics labs, classrooms, prep room and Project Lab, flexible forum space and new WCs • First floor – Biology labs, classrooms, prep room and Project Lab and central science staff office • Second floor – Chemistry labs, classrooms, prep room and Project Lab • Third floor – Roof garden and greenhouse.

An early sketch section representing the aspiration for the project

New extension

Existing Science building

Project labs future project 11

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Site Location & Town Planning Key Tonbridge School currently occupies a largely self-contained site to the northern edge of Tonbridge. The site is bound by the High Street to the East, by residential developments to the north and south and by a railway line to the western edge. The Science department is situated within the School’s main building group, at the heart of the site, between the departments of Maths, English and Technology.

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Tonbridge School and its grounds dominate the townscape of the upper High Street. The Gothic style 19th century sandstone buildings create an impressive frontage on the high street and the chapel tower is a landmark feature. Sitting within a conservation area, including a handful of Tonbridge's listed buildings, the school is a vital part of Tonbridge history.

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Barton Science Centre Chapel Big School Dry Hill House E.M. Forster Theatre Modern Languages

Project Team

Tonbridge School

Client & End User

BDP

Architect, CA, M&E, Principal Designer, Acoustics and Lighting

CTP

Structural and Civil Engineer

Synergy

Quantity Surveyor and Project Manager

Baxall

Main Contractor

Size

3,600 sqm (including 1,000 sqm extension)

Completion 2019 Local Authority

Tonbridge & Malling Council

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Ground Floor Plan Plan parti

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Cross Section Section parti

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A Note from the Architect Daniel Walder

Re-Learning the Art of Conversation

Schools have been at the heart of our communities for hundreds of years.

Alongside our universities and religious institutions, they provide a place for people to gather to exchange ideas and build relationships. More importantly, schools are the place where young people connect with each other and the world around them when their minds are most impressionable. For many of us, school is where we will form some of our most influential and enduring relationships; whether an inspiring teacher opening our eyes to new possibilities or a close friend sharing in our journey through turbulent adolescent years, these relationships have a profound impact on our lives.

Despite this unique position in society, schools can be reduced to mere exam factories, promoting a culture of academic attainment and a focus on climbing league tables, the importance of human relationships forgotten at a time when they are most important.

This academic focus is often evident in the buildings our schools inhabit. In some of our oldest most prestigious schools, primacy is given to ‘teaching & learning’ spaces, with the assumption that not all interactions are learning experiences.

Over time as school populations grow, social spaces invariably become squeezed reducing some of our most important relationships to a Snapchat post, whilst sat on the corridor floor between the lockers and the recycling bins. As developing technology increases remote communication, there is a greater need than ever for schools to promote healthy social interaction.

BDP’s recent work at one of the UK’s leading independent schools has sought to redress this balance and increase the provision of social space in historic academic settings.

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When Tonbridge School approached BDP with the challenge of enlarging their original 1887 science building to inspire a new generation of scientists, we proposed a partial demolition of the building, resulting in the loss of approximately 150m2 of floor space.

Given their desire to maximise lab space, this initial suggestion was met with confusion. However, we successfully demonstrated that sufficient lab space could still be created but the focus of the building could be shifted towards the shared social spaces to inspire a genuine interest in science beyond the lab-based syllabus.

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Biologists, Chemists and Physicists each occupy a separate floor and although logistically practical it fails to promote the type of collaborative thinking that inspires young minds and fuels scientific discovery. Shared space at the heart of the building encourages pupils, teachers and the wider school community to explore scientific ideas using pin up and exhibition display in an informal setting, outside the constraints of the curriculum.

As the school community grows into their new surroundings, it is envisaged that formal teaching will increasingly take place outside the traditional setting of the lab and that these spaces will inspire a more blended approach to social and academic aspects of school

life, enhancing and encouraging social interaction as part of the school experience.

This project has made a small cultural shift away from attainment-driven learning towards the exploration of ideas through experimentation and discussion by carving shared social space from highly constrained, operational academic environments,. Although the enormous pressure on schools, teachers and ultimately pupils to pass exams and climb league tables shows scant sign of abating, at Tonbridge School at least they have elected to place the emphasis on the social experience, to inspire a collective desire for students to venture beyond the curriculum and explore their futures, one conversation at a time • DW

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Laboratory refurbishment of existing building

New laboratory in extension building

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Laboratory Design As teachers move from room to room, it instantly helps to make every lesson different.

Some classrooms have very flexible layouts with movable chairs and desks, whilst other spaces look more like conventional laboratories, yet utilise a wide array of imaginative designs and multiple teaching positions.

There are specialist labs for optics in Physics, microscopy in Biology and university level fume extraction in Chemistry.

Traditional teaching

Not one lab is the same and the contrast between the laboratory spaces in the historic building with those in the new extension further add to this variety of experience.

This ultimately allows the pupils and staff to have a more engaged relationship with the building and the teaching experience.

Demonstration

Practical

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Physics Tonbridge Physics prides itself for providing considerable enrichment opportunities, both inside and outside lessons. The new department has been designed to encourage such extension work, allowing students to work independently outside lessons on their own projects. This will allow them to build on the department’s successes from the last 2 years, including winning the Weizmann safe-cracking competition, the UK Amateur Rocketry competition, and finishing second in the Schools Aerospace Challenge.

Our dedicated project lab is a key feature of the department’s design, allowing equipment to be left out on a continuous basis. Just two months after moving in, this is already being used extensively, both for the above competitions, as well as practical components of student Extended Projects. The space has already become the students’ own space, with upcycled speakers and a coffee machine already creating the messy feel of a university research lab!

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The variety of layouts in different classrooms have also been a successful feature of the department’s design, with teachers already choosing different labs to suit particular teaching styles for different topics. A quick walk around the department will reveals students matching electrical circuits to diagrams drawn onto write-on desks. Group work often takes places around squares tables comfortably seating 4-6 students around powered practical spaces. And large oval tables allow discussion classes to take place, encouraging student-driven lessons.

In the summer term, we are looking forward to opening up P6-P7, and P3-P4 to create large interconnected classrooms for our L6th Independent Investigations. This sees a six week off-syllabus project in which students complete a practical on any topic of their choice – a feature of Physics Sixth Form at Tonbridge which has quickly become a highlight. Having such large classrooms with considerable desk space and interconnecting doors, will allow the year-group to work together more easily, rather than feeling separated in classrooms away from their peers. If you visit the building, be sure to look for some of the examples of previous student work, which is located on the walls of the department.

It is hard to miss the gigantic atrium sitting right in the middle of the department, acting not only as a hub for the whole of science and the wider school, but also as a large space to which all of Physics is connected. It is already being used regularly for student presentations, Friday evening lectures and Isaac Physics extension workshops for Tonbridgians working alongside students from local state schools. And provides the perfect location from which to see the Physics department in action.

The Barton Science Centre allows us to build on our recent success, and to create an even more inspiring platform from which to launch the physicists and engineers of tomorrow. With almost 30 students leaving to study Physics or Engineering at university this year, it is an exciting time on the ground floor of the BSC…

Phil Deakin Head of Physics

atrium

project lab

write-on desks

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Ground Floor Physics Department

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Biology Biology has been developing a strong following for independent project work in recent years, through the extended project scheme and Principia, the student science society. These projects are starting to inspire younger students who have also enjoyed opportunities such as the Miniprojects club.

What has held us back in the past has been our ability to provide space for investigative practical work outside of lesson time so that they can learn the sorts of skills that will help them as scientists beyond the school. The new building solves the issue with the ‘megalab’ with enough space to dedicate 6 benches to extended independent work.

Sixth Form students will be given a work bench for a term, with the challenge to explore the areas of the subject which they are interested in. Recent projects by students in anti-microbial resistance and the exploration of potential epigenetic effects within fruit flies will be just a start. With the new building, such projects are now supported better than ever before and younger students will be able to witness and take part in exciting work.

Hugh Grant Head of Biology

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mega-lab

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First Floor Biology Department

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Chemistry The new department has a wide variety of teaching spaces within a flexible layout so that different learning activities can take place in a room designed for that purpose. The addition of two new 360Ëš fume cupboards allows for the most exciting demonstrations in Chemistry to reach more students than ever before, inspiring them right at the beginning of their scientific careers A quick sweep through the Chemistry department will reveal teaching rooms with wet and dry areas that mirror the academic research environment. Three bespoke Sixth Form rooms are used in lessons, demonstrations and practical work but also allow for extended project work outside of the curriculum for students of all ages.

Recent extended projects have centered around secondary research and we are extremely excited about the new opportunities that our pupils will have to design and explore new practical manifolds in their Chemical journeys, from organic synthesis to kinetics.

Ishmael Roslan Head of Chemistry

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360Ëš fume cupboard

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Second Floor Chemistry Department

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Roof Garden

Given the height of the building, the roof garden is proving an excellent vantage point for Tonbridge School’s vibrant Astronomy Club.

Below is a shot of Orion’s Nebula taken from the roof garden of the Barton Science Centre. It is composed of 20 images overlaid!

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Roof Garden Access to the roof space of the new extension is provided from the main stair core via an intricately designed spiral stair; reminiscent of ascending a church tower. This then opens up to a small, lightweight glass box on the roof which houses the greenhouse space for growing plants and facilitates a ‘hands-on’ teaching approach for Biology.

The area of open roof terrace is designated as the science garden, containing plants, seating and space for other scientific items such as beekeeping equipment and a small weather monitoring station. Understanding the school’s pedagogy is at the heart of the planter design, encouraging and facilitating different ways of working.

In terms of lighting, there is accent lighting to the roof structure, lift, staircase and planters to create visual interest which is appreciated from both near and far. To ensure the science garden has a warm and comfortable atmosphere, low level lighting is employed throughout, providing a soft ambient condition to the floor. This is then counterpointed with accent to feature shrubberies and plants.

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Seating areas Exterior potted planting Glass balustrade Greenhouse Spiral stair Lift Non-accessible area

8. Glazed roof over slot

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Sustainable Design Tackling climate change is one of the key challenges for scientists in the 21st century. The environmental strategy for the new Science Centre looks to minimise the carbon footprint of the building in its construction, as well as minimising the annual energy consumption over the building’s lifetime.

There are a number of primary considerations in regards to the design and selection of the environmental systems. Flexibility, maintainability and operating costs all influence the success of the day to day operation of the refurbished building. The objective of the design was to provide flexible, energy efficient and cost effective service solutions for all environmental systems, whilst recognising all the statutory requirements.

The atrium area has large openings between floors, which are utilised to create a natural ventilation strategy, 36

driven by the stack effect. Fresh air is brought in at low level, rises through the building and vents out of automatically opening louvres at high level. These louvres are intelligently controlled by the building management system (BMS).

Teaching spaces are naturally ventilated and contain local mechanical extractor units (with EC efficient motors) which can be locally controlled to provide a mixed mode ventilation solution.

During the summer, a night time cooling strategy cools the thermal mass of the building whereby colder air is drawn into the room spaces and utilised to cool and remove the thermal energy stored within the fabric of the building.

The solid, masonry construction of the existing science building enhances the thermal mass properties of the building. A new energy efficient boiler has been installed to heat the building in the colder months, with inverter driven pump sets and minimal hot water storage to minimise standing losses.

Good daylight penetration, with user control, defines the character of the project and adds to the open feeling within the enclosed rooms. The elevations of the new extension has generous glazed areas, allowing internal spaces to receive good levels of natural light. With the addition of lighting controls, significant energy savings are available as lighting is automatically switched off when adequate daylight is present.

The proportion of solid panels to the glazing increases on elevations orientated towards the south to minimise overheating. Projecting, vertical fins further mitigate the effects of excessive heat gain on the east and west facing elevations by providing solar shading. Replacement of old light fittings with more energy efficient fittings and the addition of PIR/automated controls lower the overall electrical energy consumption in regards to the artificial lighting system.

Façade Design Whilst the external character of the existing buildings has been largely retained, the appearance of the new extension is clearly distinguished as a contemporary piece of architecture. As a building that facilitates the learning and teaching of science, the design speaks of innovation, transparency and modernity through its materiality and use of technology.

The new extension has been designed to build on the traditions of Tonbridge School’s historic architecture. Many of the school’s finest buildings were built in the neo-gothic style, which exhibits a strong sense of vertical rhythm. The elevations of the extension to the Science Centre respond to this and in turn follow a vertical arrangement of glazing, perforated panels and metallic fins.

The elevations of the new extension are fully glazed at ground floor level to allow as much light as possible to the teaching spaces on the ground floor.

The façade treatment to the first and second floors is a combination of high quality glazing and anodised aluminium panels, the arrangement of which has been developed as a response to environmental requirements and also to emphasise a series of key views to and from the building. The aluminium panels comprise of a perforated pattern which provides an acoustically attenuated ventilation path to the internal spaces, mitigating the potential problem of traffic noise from the adjacent main road.

The elevation treatment follows a similar aesthetic style to the design of the extension to the Smythe Library, also designed by BDP. It is intended that together, the buildings form a family of development in the School’s architectural history.

Notional external elevation and plan view ventilation detail 37

Perforation Design The aspiration was to create a perforated pattern which would be cut into the solid aluminium panels on the new extension. This provides a breathable façade for natural ventilation, whilst also adding a level of detail and ornamentation to the building which celebrates Tonbridge School’s scientific heritage.

In 1950, Professor Barton showed that organic molecules could be assigned a preferred conformation based upon results accumulated by chemical physicists, in particular by Odd Hassel. Using this new technique of conformational analysis, he later determined the geometry of many other natural product molecules.

In Chemistry, conformational isomerism is a form of stereoisomerism in which the isomers can be interconverted exclusively by rotations about formally single bonds. This theory was developed

by Old Tonbridgian and Noble Prize winner Sir Derek Barton.

In 1969, Barton shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Odd Hassel for “contributions to the development of the concept of conformation and its application in Chemistry.”

One of the most famous of these conformations is that of Cyclohexane and its geometry which alters related to the energy barrier.

The strong graphical nature and the importance of Barton’s work has lead to conformational isomerism being used as the key inspiration for the perforated pattern design on the new extension.

The wave and associated conformations are set out to flow continuously around the building Façade. This allows the building to function as a teaching tool, with select areas where it is possible to stand back from the building and read the complete energy barrier to understand the conformations. This moment of distance allows one to make sense of the closer, more abstract sections.

cyclohexane study

conformational isomerism

half-chair

half-chair

energy maxima transitional states

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boat

twist-boat

twist-boat

energy minima isolated states

chair

conformations of cyclohexane

Conformations of Cyclohexane

a process shown by Sir Derek Harold Richard Barton - English organic chemist & Nobel Prize laureate taught at Tonbridge School (1932-35)

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A Note from the Artist Briony Marshall

Barton’s Chair: The Art of Connection

Barton’s Chair is a large specially commissioned sculpture hanging in the central atrium in the heart of the new Barton Science Centre of Tonbridge School. It is based on the chair conformation of cyclohexane – a molecule formed by a ring of six carbon atoms.

Both the sculpture and the Science Centre are named after Old Tonbridgian Sir Derek Barton (MH 1932-5). In 1969 he shared the Nobel prize for Chemistry with Norwegian Odd Hassel for the ‘development of the concept of conformation and its application in Chemistry’. In other words, he discovered that carbon rings could either exist as a chair shape or a boat shape.

The sculpture is 8 billion times life-size and combines a scientific model of a molecular structure with a human call for connection and cooperation. Each

carbon atom is represented by an adult figure coloured black, and each hydrogen atom by an infant coloured white.

The colours reflect the CPK colour convention used in Chemistry. The limbs of the adult figure and the right arm of each infant represent the covalent bonds that hold the molecule together; carbon usually forms four bonds, but hydrogen only one. The adult carbons are holding the hydrogen infants by the hand – an intimate analogy of connection and nurture. In the words of the novelist and Old Tonbridgian E.M. Forster: “Only Connect.”

I was approached by the school as I am a sculptor with a background in science and I had created a series of works using human figures to represent molecules, including both the chair and boat isomers of cyclohexane. I am fascinated by the building blocks of life, and use these to look at the fragility, beauty and complexity of human life.

The work was created over 6 months.

Physical and computer models were first created to work out the best scale and positioning of the sculpture in the space.

Initially I created a wax maquette at 1/3 the size of the final sculpture, and worked with a male model and babies to understand the anatomy of the poses.

I then created a large armature out of steel and aluminium, combining a 4 sided pyramid with wire bodies. I worked up the figures in clay, letting go of the purely literal and used the movement of the muscles and body parts to highlight the dynamism and geometry of the sculpture.

A silicon mould was created from the finished clay, and this was used to cast 6 male figures and 12 babies in resin, which were connected together through a stainless steel framework of rods and tubes. The finished sculpture was then raised up and suspended from the ceiling in the atrium of the school.

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My hope is that my sculpture will inspire the students of Tonbridge not only to become fascinated with chemistry like I was at school, but also get an insight into how the pursuit of scientific knowledge is one of the ways humans use to try to understand the mysteries of life: how and why are we here? We may never discover a final ‘truth’ but both the arts and sciences give us different windows into viewing the meaning of “life, the universe and everything” • BM

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Physical model used to explore the experience of moving around the sculpture Analogue modelling techniques use to set the hanging position Digital modelling techniques used to explore the different viewing angles and structural challenges Trial assembly of the resin sculpture in the studio of CHD Art Makers in France

DNA Mural Created exactly sixty years after the discovery of DNA, Briony Marshall’s work DNA: Helix of Life is emblematic of the great achievements of modern science.

A two metre tall DNA molecule, it is constructed from 634 human figures joined at the hands and feet each representing a different atom in the DNA. Made first in wax and then cast in bronze, the work demonstrates ambitious talent paired with a rather humbled view of society; that we must support each other as individuals to operate as a whole. The integrity of the structure depends on each figure playing its part and is a powerful representation of the interconnectedness of life.

The human figures each represent an atom that make up this macromolecule.

There is the tetrahedral man with outstretched arms and legs that represents the four bonds of a carbon atom, the red female figure with two outstretched arms representing oxygen which can form two bonds, the small child coloured white for hydrogen atoms, another male figure, who stretches out in 3 directions as nitrogen, and a complex phosphorous female who can make 5 connections to other figures.

These individual bodies come together in precise molecular geometries to form the ten base pairs of a twist of DNA, connected together by two twisting strands of sugar-phosphate backbone.

The sculpture is exhibited in the centre of the historic staircase where Briony has also created a mural to explain and illustrate the science of the piece. This creates an immersive and educational experience as boys, staff and visitors alike circulate through the space.

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Uncovering the Past Although the historic building has been extended and improved to provide facilities to support 21st century learning, the work undertaken was also a sensitive, regeneration project.

1887-94 1 2 3 4

Biology Laboratory Mechanical Laboratory Chemical Laboratory Physical Laboratory

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Many of the original features that make the building unique have been maintained and restored to create a complementary juxtaposition of the old and new.

Some features, such as tiles, windows and doors, which were a part of the building when it was completed in 1887 had been covered up in the intervening years until the new project revealed them.

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This has allowed the Barton Science Centre to celebrate both the past and the future. The school is starting to name the laboratories after eminent Tonbridge scientists.

The pictures capture what some of the Science Centre rooms looked like during the 1800’s. Readers might like to compare them with the modern-day images taken during the works and some of the now completed spaces.

The strong graphical nature and the importance of Barton’s work has lead to conformational isomerism being used as the key inspiration for the perforated pattern design on the new extension.

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1 Staff Room 2 Physics Laboratory 3 Atrium 4 Physics & Project Laboratory

1 Staff Room 2 Physics Laboratory 3 Atrium 4 Physics & Project Laboratory

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Opening up the heart of the Science building

Curtain walling installation progress

Extensive excavation and contiguous pile construction

Demolishing the existing elevation

Site Diary

Physics lab with clerestory taking shape

Uncovering historic ceiling panelling

Roof light cone construction

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Steel frame viewed from high street

Primary steelwork shaping the atrium space

Display case prototype in joinery factory

Perforated panel sample on site

Primary steelwork arriving on site

Aligning old and new roof structures

Slot space taking shape between old and new

Juxtaposition of old and new roof scapes

Steel goalpost inserted to line the gap in the historic fabric

Atrium space at ground floor

Uncovering heritage in the historic corridor space

Restoration of historic lab space

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Outreach & Events The aspiration is that the Barton Science Centre will continue to foster this culture of outreach to engage the local and wider community to be inspired by science.

J O I N US FO R TA K E O FF

L AU N CH W E E K AT T H E BA R TO N S CI E N CE CE N T R E

The Science Centre was launched with an exciting series of events over four weeks in the second half of the Lent term, showcasing the potential of the new building and making a bold statement of the school’s intentions for STEM activities in the year to come.

These events included: D I S CO V E R . I N S P I R E . B E L I E V E .

International Student Science Conference Tonbridge School’s Student Science Conference had a global theme in 2019, with delegates from schools in Japan and Germany joining with pupils from Kent, London and Sussex to share the results of their research projects through posters, discussion and presentations.

Barton Science Competition

ISSET Mission Discovery

Year 9 and Year 10 pupils from Tonbridge and local partner schools took part in the first running of an annual competition testing experimental skills in Physics, Biology and Chemistry.

A week of innovation and discovery workshops led by NASA astronauts, rocket scientists and postgraduate students took place at Tonbridge in March 2019. Teams of six, made up of pupils from a range of schools, competed to produce the best design for an experiment, with the winning entry later being sent to the International Space Station. There were one-day events for the Years 9 and 10, and a three-day event for Lower Sixth pupils, with further talks and activities in the evenings.

Evolution Art Show Evolution themed art created by the Second Year at Tonbridge was placed on display in the Barton Science Centre, a cross-curricular project connecting the Biology and Art departments. There was also a talk by paleoartist Julian Hume, famous for his stunning recreations of extinct animals such as the dodo.

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Philanthropy The Science Centre would not have been possible without a thriving culture of philanthropy and support throughout the school community.

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The Headmaster and Governors of the school wish to sincerely thank all those who have given financial support to the project.

Donor Recognition Wall 16 screen display Interactive Periodic Table Magnetic whiteboards Bee hive Fishtank Timetable room allocator screen

8. Display cabinets

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Animated atrium space at the heart of the project 59

With grateful thanks to all our donors ...

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