The Educational Institute of Scotland

Founded in 1847 the EIS is Scotland’s foremost teaching union with responsibility for influencing government teaching policy, and negotiating teachers’ pay & conditions.

Since the early 1920’s the union has occupied three beautiful and impressive Grade A listed mansion blocks in Edinburgh’s New Town. The buildings had been well maintained but had not been significantly updated for many years and suffered from poor infrastructure and use of space. In particular the EIS wanted to focus strongly on its members giving us a brief to open up the building so that it could serve as a meeting place, a training & advice centre and a conference facility as well as an office. In addition to providing a range of both formal and informal spaces to encourage interaction with staff and members the scheme also liberated sufficient space to create two revenue generating rental flats in the basements.

Designed as a pragmatic refurbishment for a modern progressive organisation the design has been kept deliberately simple with a limited colour palate to highlight the many original building features and a deliberate modernist approach to any insertions, furniture, fittings and finishes.

Working with a key design team including Architects & Project Leaders Fouin & Bell, Building Services Engineers Blackwoods and QS, Doig & Smith, Cubit 3D were responsible for the complete interior refurbishment of the building including all interior finishes and surfaces, light fittings, furniture design and specification. The client was in occupation throughout the work requiring careful coordination of the works over a programme that extended for nearly two years.