John Fieldhouse Building (JFB) at Royal Navy Submarine Museum: Visitor Centre Orientation and Reinterpretation

The National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) is seeking to appoint a supplier on a design and build contract to refresh the orientation and interpretation of the visitor centre within the John Fieldhouse building and improve the wayfinding at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum (RNSM).

RNSM is located in Gosport which is situated on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite the city of Portsmouth and is linked by the Gosport ferry. The museum is located close to the former submarine base HMS Dolphin, home of the submarine service until 1999. Visitors reach the museum either by road or via the waterbus from Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

The site opened as a museum in 1981 with HMS Alliance, a Second World War era submarine, as the principal exhibit. The site now also houses two other submarines. Holland 1, the Royal Navy's first submarine and the midget submarine X-24. The John Fieldhouse Building (JFB) houses the main reception and museum shop on the ground floor, as well as the museum galleries.

We want to create a clear point of arrival and welcome for our visitors when they enter JFB. This welcome will be where visitors are greeted by staff who can advise and guide them on how to use the spaces on site (the galleries and the submarines), and where tactile map is available for orientation. We are keen that the visit starts at this point, giving visitors clear orientation and a stronger sense of story and place and a better understanding of the links with wider site next to the former HMS Dolphin.

See Appendix 1 for photographs of the current interpretation and orientation of JFB Ground Floor Visitor Centre and Shop Area.

Appendix 3 has a building floor plan of the ground floor as it was built, it does not reflect the current layout.

Site visits are strongly recommended for all suppliers interested, with site visits to be held on Friday 11th November and Friday 18th November respectively. Please contact jason.webb@nmrn.org.uk to arrange these visits.