Following the success in Newcastle and Sheffield, WoodFest will be heading to Reading in England. The event takes place throughout May, June and July with a focus on the social impact of housing, custom build, connecting communities, local timber and healthy building products.
The programme features a collection of seminars, exhibitions and tours celebrating the versatility and sustainability of building with wood, organised by the UK timber industry’s campaign, Wood for Good.
For the next two weeks until 7 June, the University of Reading School of Architecture invites visitors to explore its pop-up structure, the ‘The Urban Room’. This is a second-year architecture student project designed for discussion and debate about architecture in the built environment.
The Urban Room will also host a series of Wednesday and Friday lunchtime ‘encounters’ with Reading-based artists exploring their own practice in response to the Urban Room. On 7 June, Reading University will explore ‘hybrid practices’ through an arts-architecture lens offering opportunities to move, discuss, think, experience and explore with guest artists and architects.
WoodFest Reading continues on 12 June with a tour of Vastern Timber, one of the largest British hardwood sawmills in the country. In addition to the tour, the day will include an insightful CPD talk delivered by managing director Tom Barnes, ‘Selecting Timber Cladding’, covering timber cladding choices, composites and modified wood. The day will wrap up with lunch and plenty of opportunity for questions and discussion.
On the afternoon of Wednesday 3 July KISS House will host a panel discussion on the topical question of ‘Making high quality housing attainable.’ Chaired by Christiane Lellig, campaign director for Wood for Good, the event will bring together a broad line up of panellists from across the industry to discuss what quality housing is, why it is important and how to achieve it.
The early evening will see a case study presentation of the RIBA East award-winning home, The Deerings. Delivered by the project team and the client, attendees will learn more about this striking and ambitious Passivhaus building, constructed from a super-insulated timber frame with recycled paper insulation.
