Project summary

Amnesty International UK's headquarters in Shoreditch, East London, were designed by Witherford Watson Mann Architects and opened in January 2005. The complete re-working of two furniture factories and a new extension brought Amnesty's 170 staff together in a single 'home'.

 The centre provides a focal point for Amnesty supporters and the wider human rights community, and provides creative space for human rights activists. There is a wealth of resources open to the public, Amnesty members, youth and student groups and the human rights community as a whole.

The building features a 258-seat Public Hall which is used both as a room for internal staff briefings and also a space for the presentation of seminars, previews of Amnesty films, lectures, conferences, workshops, training days, press conferences and similar events.

A simple but flexible lighting and audiovisual system was designed by Charcoalblue in collaboration with Paul Gillieron Acoustics for use in the space, along with a movable bleacher system which may be used in conjunction with an acoustic screen to provide a small or large seating capacity for the room.