Located in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, the Great Charles Street project is a landmark Build to Rent development delivered by Moda Living. The scheme transforms a brownfield site, undeveloped for over 70 years, into a thriving residential community. The completed project will deliver 772 high-quality rental apartments and a hotel, forming Moda’s second neighbourhood in the city. Designed by Ryder Architecture, with Weedon Architects acting as Executive Architect, the façade design pays homage to the area’s rich architectural heritage while adopting modern construction methods. Precast concrete played a central role in delivering this architectural ambition.
Thorp Precast was appointed to design, manufacture, and install over 1,060 precast units across multiple blocks, supporting a complex façade solution that combines traditional aesthetic with modern performance. The façade strategy was developed in close collaboration with the architect and design team to deliver multiple architectural masonry profiles. These included full storey-height panels incorporating punched window openings, vertical emphasis brick-faced piers, spandrel panels, and reconstituted stone coping units. The approach ensured variety in expression while maintaining a cohesive visual language across the development.
Each block adopted a tailored solution, Block C1: Vertical emphasis brick-faced piers and spandrel panels featuring decorative Staffordshire brindled tiles and reconstituted stone copings. Block C2: Mullions and spandrels up to Level 2, above which large spanning full-height panels with punched window openings were used. Blocks C3 & B3: Mullion and spandrel arrangement up to Level 1, with punched window panels continuing above. Block C4: A solution largely comprising double storey-height mullion and spandrel units.
This variation allowed the architectural design intent to be realised while taking full advantage of precast construction benefits. Joint widths between panels were carefully controlled at 10–12mm and concealed to replicate the appearance of traditional handset brickwork.
Panels were installed using two main contractor tower cranes, operated by two dedicated Thorp Fixing Gangs. The use of offsite precast meant that no external scaffolding or wet trades were required, significantly reducing programme risk and improving on-site efficiency. The cladding package was delivered ahead of schedule.
The majority of the lower block panels were designed as ground-bearing units. These transferred all vertical loads directly to pile-capped foundations, relying only on the primary structural frame for lateral restraint. In addition, panel fixings were engineered to mitigate the risk of disproportionate collapse in the event of impact at ground level.
Material selection was a critical aspect of the project. Birmingham City Council took an active role in the specification process, emphasising the importance of high-quality brick and stone finishes in reinforcing the architectural narrative of the Jewellery Quarter.
Thorp Precast conducted a detailed material review exercise, including site visits with planners to compare proposed brick samples with local façades. Full-scale mock-up panels were cast featuring a variety of brick types, mortar colours, and joint profiles to support final selection.
All brick types used were sourced from UK manufacturers and selected to meet rigorous standards for precast use, frost resistance, durability, and compatibility with casting processes. The brick-faced precast units were fully factory finished and pointed prior to delivery. In this case, window installation was carried out on-site into the precast panels.