Dulwich College, London

The private school celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2019, for which they have refurbished the buildings and grounds. Contracted by the landscape designer we were asked for a re-lighting project ready for the celebrations.

Briefed to design the lighting for the façade, clock tower, war memorial and the new landscape, we also worked on the navigational lighting while being conscious that students were the main end users, therefore, we had to keep in mind security, ease of access and making sure the fixtures would not be a trip hazard or easily damaged.

Being a Grade II listed building, the client wanted to avoid attaching any fixture to the structure, except for the clock tower where we could replace existing fittings. Planning permission was applied to Southwark Council and granted in full.

To cover the whole height of the building from ground level we used recessed flush lights. The challenge here was to avoid large shadows, which we achieved by positioning adjustable fittings further away from the façade. This meant we avoided hot spots but also allowed us to reach the top of the structure while keeping the shapes and decorative details of the façade, giving depth to the intricacies of this magnificent historical building.

For navigational lighting we had bespoke bollards designed and built to match the white bollards associated with Dulwich Village, achieving safe navigation for the front paths and drive.

All the fixtures were specified in 3000K to enhance the colour of the brickwork. Apart from the bollards, all the fittings we used have the ability to be tilted internally or angled externally, thus avoiding light pollution and glare.

The scheme is controlled by an astronomical time clock that switches the lights on and off from dusk to dawn.

We would love to design your lighting project and if you would like to discuss this further please contact us via the website, or email design@moonlightdesign.co.uk or 020 8925 8639.