London’s first specialist 6th-form academy for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics was created in an adventurous and challenging remodelling of a 6-storey office building in Islington. The design concept considers how the multi-storey building could be a navigable and coherent whole and provides the variety and quality of spaces necessary for a successful academy. Imaginative re-use of the basement car park establishes a special and much-used flexible hall space, the heart of the whole school and the venue for many events. Significant increases in occupier density are achieved with an innovative ventilation system making effective use of the existing concrete frame and maximising daylight in teaching areas. Exposed beams and soffits increase thermal mass, and a densely-packed central service spine gives taller ceiling heights to all teaching spaces. Images of pioneering scientists, mathematicians and engineers are used to promote an identity for each floor in the building.