The project
Situated within the leafy suburbs of Cambridge, Virido sets out to offer an ambitious new vision for modern living. The development comprises 208 apartments, duplexes and townhouses formed into eight “quads”, each with a shared central courtyard carefully designed to cultivate close community bonds. True to its name’s Latin definition – to “be green” – the “quads” are connected by tree-lined streets and surround a large central green square.
The design
The use of materials has been carefully considered to support and enhance this natural vision with dwellings clad in a subtle mixture of brick and timber cladding. Beyond its carefully considered exterior, the development has been designed to an energy efficient and highly insulated specification equivalent to Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5.
The forms the structural roof and walls of the dwellings. The system’s highly insulated core, dry construction and bespoke, factory engineered design allowed the demanding thermal performance targets to be met simply at scale.
The TEK Building System’s OSB/3 facing and proprietary jointing system also supported the estate’s highly airtight design. On completion, each property was individually assessed and achieved recorded air leakage rates of below 1.5 air change per hour @ 50 pa. A mechanical ventilation and heat recovery system ensures a constant supply of fresh air within the homes. The system uses heat from outgoing stale air to warm incoming fresh air, further reducing heating demand within the buildings.
"Sustainability is a key element of the design which has been considered and integrated from the outset". Pollard Thomas Edwards
Reviewed April 2026
