Two St. Peter’s Square, Manchester M2 3NQ

Two St. Peter’s Square Headline Facts:

546 reconstructed stone panels, covering 7,210 square meters.

Contractor : Laing O’Rourke

Architect : Simpson Haugh

Award : ‘Highly Commended’ – Concrete Society Awards 2018.

Judges comments :

“Visual appearance was a key driver in a very sensitive historic area of the city. The building does not look out of place at all, despite the time differences in construction. The decorative façades are very special and could only be done in precast concrete or an army of stone masons. Materials are standard but the complexity and quality of the finish is exceptional. The difficulty in forming these complex and varied units should not be underestimated. They are true three-dimensional concrete sculptures used as office window façades.


External column cladding was complex, multiply curved and feels appropriate for the location. The complexity, level of overall detail and quality is excellent. The joints of the units were lined up to show geometrical symmetry from vertical face to horizontal soffit. The judges were very impressed by this project. The decorative façades are superb and it would not be surprising if this level of decorative façade became more popular.

The Finer Details:

2 St. Peters Square, is a truly distinguished building with its 12 floors rising majestically over the surrounding streetscape. The gable end faces onto Princess St and the building is adorned with delicate filigree tracery panels. Drawing inspiration from the Lancaster Rose which adorns the county flag and from the Cotton Bud fountain, the tracery panels were designed to incorporate these elements whilst drawing on further inspiration from the Town Hall extension stair turrets. The tracery panels are both decorative and functional and offer natural shading from the full height glazing which is situated behind them.

This choice of mix with a polished finish gives the building a timeless elegance appropriate to its prime location amongst such buildings of historical importance. The panels on the main façades embraced the ethos of off-site construction. The windows were installed at Techrete production facility and were delivered and installed as one complete unit . This resulted in a reduction in programme time and in the amount of trades required on site. This project won ‘Highly Commended’ at the Concrete Society Awards 2018.