Cartwright
Pickard

This project was won in an international design competition to develop best practice in affordable housing. It has gathered many accolades and awards from the RIBA, Civic Trust and Housing Design Awards amongst others, and has achieved Gold Building For Life Standard.

The scheme occupies a site between a massive retail development and mixed fabric of Victorian, Edwardian and later terraced housing. The development encompasses 27 houses and 51 flats and maisonettes for rent or shared ownership. A pedestrian friendly access road, over-sailed by dramatic cantilevers, separates the housing from a landscaped parking strip.

The retail development is bounded by a seven storey ‘citadel’ wall forming the northern boundary to the site from which run a series of timber clad blocks, up to four storeys in height, providing a succession of mews spaces alternating with private gardens.The scheme creates a strong sense of place. The new buildings are of simple geometric forms and at second and third floor levels the blocks are cut into to provide private roof gardens for upper level dwellings.

The terraced housing was formed of prefabricated timber panels which took just 12 days to erect on site. The use of offsite construction designed out the need for scaffolding on the project, saving £350,000 which was used to pay for a micro CHP unit to generate electricity and provide space heating and hot water for residents.

The original design competition was won by Cartwright Pickard as lead design consultant, in association with B+C Architetes.