Elizabeth Maginnis Court

Elizabeth Maginnis Court is a Dunedin Canmore Housing Association (DCHA) Development located in Royston, an area of predominately social housing in the north of Edinburgh. The development was commissioned by DCHA in close liaison with The City of Edinburgh Council (Health and Social Care and Services for Communities Departments) and Edinburgh Community Health Partnership.

The project is an innovative model of flexible care. The building houses 68 one and two bedroom flats offering a variety of care options for residents, along with a cafe, two residents’ lounges and an area for future community use.

The concept is to allow the residents a high level of choice and freedom in how they use the building, with the cafe being envisaged
as an informal dining space close to the main entrance where visitors could be entertained.

The architectural design is based on strong urban design principles of reinforcing the local street pattern, which has begun to be
eroded by demolition and insensitive development. The building gathers round an open courtyard which is used by both residents and immediate neighbours and is conceived as part of the public realm.

The entrance to the building, the cafe and the main circulation areas all look onto this courtyard, providing both interest for the
building and a sense of visual security over the space.

The building has been designed to comply with the Edinburgh Standards for Sustainable Building. Its construction provides
insulation levels above current Building Regulation. The building also has a communal heating system, partially supplied by a combined heat and power boiler which generates sufficient electricity for all communal areas throughout the building.

Photography by David Grinly.