Frameless eaves windows in Leeds were developed for Seacroft Hospital (Rob Burrow Centre), a specialist motor neurone disease care facility where daylight, calm interior conditions and a non-institutional architectural language were integral to the design. IQ Projects designed and installed 11 repeated eaves glazing assemblies, each combining a full-height structural glass pane with fixed roof glazing above. The solution resolved the wall-to-roof junction with a direct glass-to-glass connection at the eaves, bringing daylight to the building edge while avoiding a heavier framed roof detail.
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Credit
Photography by Daniel Shearing
Location
Leeds, UK
Frameless eaves windows in Leeds for a repeatable healthcare roof-edge detail
The design challenge for these frameless eaves windows in Leeds was not to create a single feature opening, but to develop one disciplined roof-edge glazing detail that could be repeated precisely across the building. At Seacroft Hospital, the glazing had to support a robust healthcare envelope, controlled wall-to-roof junctions and a consistent architectural finish, while still helping the building feel lighter and less institutional at the perimeter. That meant resolving daylight, weathering, support and thermal performance within one repeatable assembly rather than relying on several different edge conditions. The solution was a single roof-edge detail repeated 11 times: structural glass below, fixed roof glass above and concealed support behind. This allowed daylight to be brought deeper into the plan while maintaining one technically controlled glazing condition across the project.
Glass-to-glass eaves junction for frameless eaves windows in Leeds
At the eaves, the design problem was how to carry glazing from the wall plane into the roof plane without introducing a visibly heavier framed transition. Each assembly solves that with a direct glass-to-glass junction between a vertical structural glass pane and a fixed roof pane above. Concealed supporting framework sits behind the visible glazing line, so the roof edge reads as a lighter, cleaner architectural detail while support, sealing and tolerances remain controlled. For frameless eaves windows in Leeds, this is the key move that turns a potentially bulky junction into a precise roof-edge glazing solution.
Repeatable frameless eaves windows in Leeds across 11 openings
A second challenge was consistency across 11 identical locations. Rather than introducing multiple detail types, the glazing package relied on one repeatable structural glass and roof glazing assembly across the scheme. This simplified the relationship between the vertical pane, the overhead glass and the adjacent construction, while keeping alignment, sealing and finish consistent from opening to opening. Because the assemblies are fixed, the detail could be developed around precision, repeatability and envelope control rather than multiple hardware or framing conditions.
Performance considerations
For a healthcare building, the performance of these frameless eaves windows in Leeds depends on the reliability of the fixed wall-to-roof junction as much as on visual clarity. Each assembly combines thermally broken structural glazing at the vertical pane with thermally broken roof glazing above, concentrating support, sealing and weathering into one repeatable detail. The structural glazing uses a fully thermally broken fixing profile, while the roof glazing uses a thermally broken roof section with laminated inner glass for overhead safety. Together, these systems support consistent thermal performance, controlled perimeter detailing and durable weathering across all 11 openings, while maintaining a more precise roof-edge glazing condition than a heavier framed build-up.
Technical details
- Frameless eaves glazing: 11 repeated assemblies, each combining a 1210 x 2357 mm full-height structural glass pane with a 1210 x 1400 mm fixed roof glass pane above
- Structural glazing: thermally broken fixing profile depth 63mm; max glass thickness 41.5mm; expected Uw 1.1 W/m²K; minimum fixing setback 55mm; structure deflection allowance 5mm
- Roof glazing: glass thickness up to 37.5mm DGU; typical Ug 1.1 W/m²K; example Uw 1.2 W/m²K; minimum upstand 150mm; fall from 5° to 45°
At Seacroft Hospital, frameless eaves windows in Leeds show how one resolved architectural glazing detail can deliver daylight, repeatability and controlled envelope performance across a wider building. This approach is well suited to healthcare, education and community projects where architects and specifiers need precise roof-edge glazing, repeatable junctions and a disciplined installation strategy. If you are specifying frameless eaves windows in Leeds or a comparable architectural glazing detail, contact IQ Projects to discuss design development, technical detailing and specification support.
