Hobson & Porter, Innovation based on tradition

Hobson & Porter has been selected by Manor CE School in York to build The Hive, a £3 million centre of excellence for media and the arts that aims to provide "world-class facilities" for students from across the city.

The two-storey creative media centre, which has been devised as the latest addition to the Millfield Lane site, will include a 200-seat auditorium, TV, sound recording, animation, arts and fashion studios, space for graphic arts, drama and dance and a café and bistro area.

Due for completion in August 2011, The Hive will expand the facilities Manor School offers to teenagers throughout the area who attend the school to achieve their diploma in creative media. The Hive will also be made available for community groups and businesses during evenings, weekends and holidays, in order to provide access to a wide-range of other learners.

"The idea behind the creative media centre is for it to set a standard not just in York, but nationally," said the school's head teacher, Brian Crosby.

The Manor School site team will be led by Louis Bradley