The club now has over 300 registered players, whilst the growth in girl’s and women’s football has been particularly strong.  This growth, while welcome, has placed the existing facilities under severe pressure with  the current arrangement in the Engine Room building at Gibson Park, Melrose all crammed into a small footprint that is not fit for purpose.  In particular, the Club lacks safe, secure and private changing facilities for its girl’s and women’s teams. 

CSY were appointed by the club to restore and adapt the Engine Room building and provide new, compliant facilities for club and community use.  Sitting within the Melrose Conservation Area, the Engine Room is a modest, historic building constructed in 1901 to house the horse-drawn fire engine that served Melrose. 

The material palette has been carefully considered to be contemporary yet to remain respectful, particularly in terms of weathering, to the high-quality historic material palette of stonework, slate and timber. It is proposed to clad the extension in vertical, timber boards that will weather naturally to compliment the patina and tone of the existing sandstone and volcanic agglomerate with sandstone pavers, matching in tone and colour, will be used for the external landscaping. A sedum roof offers ecological advantages and goes someway to replacing the existing parkland that is lost due to the building footprint.