We are currently delivering phase 1 of the extension and refurbishment of Clare College’s Old Court to provide a new state of the art kitchen and café and make the court fully accessible for the first time in history. The main construction works include demolition of 20th century buildings along the North passage and River Wing, internal alterations to the existing kitchen, and major structural alterations to the North Range façade.

We were appointed in September 2019 to deliver the pre-construction phase of works for the £12.4m extension and refurbishment works, which included an enabling period of 16 weeks to construct two bridges. One of these would link the Fellows Garden with the Masters Garden and the working area in the North Passage.

The 57-metre long bridge, which was built and craned into place overnight by Mabey, now sits between the Garret Hostel Bridge and Clare College Bridge. This means that for the first time since the 1960s, the Middle River of the Cam between mill pond weir and Jesus Green weir has ten bridges, rather than nine. Installation of the bridge has enabled plant and machinery to access the Master’s Garden at the back of Old Court, the heart of Clare College. Main works commenced on the 19th of October 2021, and the project is due to complete in September 2022.

“The College have found working with Barnes on a day to day basis, to be easy, they are considerate, helpful and the staff are always engaged and polite (from the Banksman to the Site Manager). There have been no issues in working around an active College building, and additional issues presented by Covid have all been successfully managed. The College Health and Safety officer has been particularly complimentary of the Barnes set up and working methods.
The College has no hesitation in recommending Barnes Construction to work in a College environment. They are a proactive company, who have come on board with the College’s aims and sought to deliver the project in the most practical manner, while maintaining value for money.”
Deborah Hoy, Estates Director, Clare College