The Strawberry Field garden was immortalised by the Beatles and thousands of visitors flock to the iconic red gates each year to see the area where John Lennon played as a boy. In 2019, the Salvation Army opened those gates for the first time to unveil a new visitor centre for Beatles fans. Yet this is far more than a tourist draw. The visitor centre also has a charitable mission at its heart: to provide training and learning opportunities for vulnerable young people.


Pavilion in the park
Designed by Hoskins Architects, the three-part development comprises the visitor centre, training centre and landscape, with the building designed as a ‘pavilion in the park’.
Secret-fix effect
The visitor centre features an exhibition space, shop and café. Expansive, glazed walls take in the views of the garden and Russwood Siberian larch (SILA Select®) complements the mature woodland setting. The off-sawn cladding features a fire retardant coating and benefits from F-BohrFix® ZB screws, which were created by timber engineers to provide a clean, fix-free appearance.


National recognition
This focus on setting and quality has won national recognition. Strawberry Field attracted a GIA Education Award in 2020 and has gone on to win the Selwyn Goldsmith Award for Universal Design and the RIBA North West Award this year.