MAP Architecture / Alleyn’s School Canopy

An entrance canopy exploring how digital manufacturing can support ambitious school architecture.

MAP Architecture approached BlokBuild to explore how our digitally driven approach could realise their vision for a statement entrance canopy for a forward-thinking school in South London.

The design features a distinctive corkscrew roof geometry twisting in two directions, developed using advanced algorithmic design tools and rationalised for factory production. From the street, the entrance canopy reads as a simple pitched roof before shifting into a twisting form that opens toward the heart of the school. The geometry bridges the character of Alleyn’s heritage buildings with the school’s contemporary approach to teaching.

The combined glulam frame and timber cassette structure was installed over five days using a minimal kit of genie lifts and hand tools, illustrating how digital design and manufacturing can enable expressive, site-specific architecture while maintaining a controlled and predictable construction process.

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