BPTW’s designs for the Teviot Estate redevelopment The 2,000-home regeneration of the Teviot Estate in east London has been delayed after the local council raised concerns about loss of daylight and overlooking. Developer Hill and social landlord Poplar Harca have sent architect BPTW back to the drawing board to redesign four towers on the 8.3ha estate redevelopment, which was originally scheduled to start construction last month. It is the second delay to have hit the scheme after it was redesigned to add second staircases following the introduction of fire safety requirements for additional means of escape in buildings above 18m in the event of a fire. First submitted for planning in June last year, the scheme consists of 21 building plots and blocks up to 30 storeys in height on the site of the existing 1950s estate in Poplar. Since submission, discussions with Tower Hamlets council and statutory consultees following an independent review of the scheme’s proposed daylight impacts have resulted in changes to the massing of four buildings and the footprint of one tower. The amendments have seen two 24-storey towers heightened by two storeys, a pair of linked 18-storey towers combined into one 22-storey block and another tower increased from 16 to 19 storeys. An open space at the centre of the development has also been increased in size by 456sq m and a play space has been relocated to the open space as part of the redesign, which was submitted as a fresh design and access statement in March. BPTW’s amendments follow concerns raised by Tower Hamlets following the submission of the scheme’s original hybrid planning application over the massing of buildings along the site’s eastern boundary along the A12 road. The council also questioned the distance between the proposed buildings and the level of overlooking between homes. Paul Dooley, director of development and regeneration at Poplar Harca, speaking on behalf of the landlord and Hill Group, said: “We needed to update our plans to meet the requirements of the new Building Safety Act, ensuring all buildings over six storeys high have a second staircase. ”We have submitted the planning application to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets for their consideration and have been working alongside their planning team to ensure we update designs based on their recommendations. ”This includes enhancing the spacing around homes to provide residents with greater separation, privacy, and a more enjoyable living environment.” A Tower Hamlets spokesperson said: “Planning permission for Teviot Estate is progressing, with our Planning Officers working closely with Poplar Harca and Hill Developments to ensure any issues with the application are addressed.” The scheme would be split into four phases and contain up to 1,923 homes, which has not changed following the redesign of four buildings. Hill and Poplar Harca are targeting a planning committee date at Tower Hamlets council in June. The project team also includes planning consultant Lichfields, structural and civil engineer Lichfields, transport consultant Waterman, landscape architect Outerspace and accessibility consultant David Bonnett Associates.

The scheme will contain more than 1,000 homes in 21 buildings Squire & Partners’ £1.5bn plans to redevelop a historic brewery site in south-west London have been approved on appeal following a 10-year planning battle. The mixed-use proposals for the 9ha Stag Brewery site in Mortlake, designed for Singaporean developer Reselton, have already been given the go ahead by Richmond council three times but have been repeatedly rejected at stage two by London mayor Sadiq Khan. Three versions of the plans have been submitted with the latest version containing 1,068 homes, a 1,200-place school, retail space, hotel, cinema, offices and nine acres of green space. Located close to the finishing line of the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, the scheme has faced opposition because of the perceived impact on its riverside site and its amount of affordable housing, which accounts for only 7.5% of homes in the latest iteration of the plans. > Also read: Squire & Partners’ £1.5bn Richmond scheme approved for the third time after second staircase changes The Greater London Authority (GLA), which requires a minimum of 35% affordable housing under the London Plan, notified Reselton last year that it was likely to refuse the third version of the scheme. Reselton then appealed against non-determination of the application before it could be refused, resulting in an inquiry which took place last year. The developer and its development manager Dartmouth Capital Advisors have agreed a community infrastructure levy payment on the latest scheme of between £48m and £60m to be paid to Richmond council. The scheme has already been approved by Richmond council three times Dartmouth Capital Advisors development director Guy Duckworth said: “Our client bought the site with the benefit of a planning brief from Richmond council, the spirit of which our architects Squire & Partners have followed faithfully, and yet it has taken 10 years to obtain a planning consent.” The plans were first approved in January 2020 following amendments to increase the scheme’s affordable housing from 17.5% to 30%, with the application being rejected by Khan because it fell short of the GLA’s 35% minimum. Squire & Partners was ordered to rethink the plans, which Richmond council approved for the second time on 19 July 2023 despite the affordable housing being cut to 7.5% and the application racking up 673 objections, with just 19 public comments of support. Just five days after this consent, former housing secretary Michael Gove announced plans to lower the threshold for second staircases in residential buildings from 30m to 18m. The design team was sent back to the drawing board again to add a second means of escape to eight of the scheme’s 21 buildings, resulting in a loss of more than 2,500 sq m of office space and the relocation of refuse stores in five buildings to basement level. The project team includes planning consultant Gerald Eve, structural engineer Watermans, services consultant Hoare Lea, landscape architect Gillespies and daylight and sunlight consultant EB7. Beer is said to have been brewed there since 1487 when it was part of a monastery. It later supplied British troops in India and the Crimea, and more recently was owned by Watneys, which renamed it the Stag brewery, and then by global drinks giant ABInBev which produced Budweiser there. Production ceased in 2015 when it was sold for £158m to Reselton.

The 34-storey tower is being developed by CO-RE Wilkinson Eyre’s plans for a 34-storey office tower in the City of London have been sent in to Square Mile planners. The application for 130 Fenchurch Street follows two rounds of public consultation which took place last year. Developer on the job is CO-RE. The site, located on the southern border of the City’s main cluster of towers, is occupied by a 16-storey 1950s building, Fountain House, which currently lies vacant. It will include 31 storeys of office space and exhibition space in the middle level of the building. Source: Miller HareThe building will include exhibitiion space in the middle of the tower Others working on the deal include QS T&T Alinea, structures consultant Arup, planning consultant DP9 and heritage consultant Tavernor. The scheme is being backed by Aviva Investors, which was behind a previous plan for a 17-storey tower drawn up by Farshid Moussavi Architecture which was mothballed more than five years ago. Demolition of the site’s existing building is set to start in early 2026 if the plans are approved. Aviva’s portfolio of schemes in the City include One Liverpool Street, designed by Eric Parry and being built by Mace, and 101 Moorgate, also being built by Mace, and designed by John Robertson Architects. CO-RE is behind the Lansdowne House scheme in Mayfair, being built by Mace, while last year it finally started work on the ITV Studios redevelopment which is set to be built by Multiplex. Street-level view of the proposals for 130 Fenchurch Street

Source: Dirk Lindner150 Aldersgate Fletcher Priest Architects has completed the retrofit and extension of an office building in the City of London for Chinese tech giant Tik-Tok. The 150 Aldersgate scheme has been delivered for clients Topland Group and Beltane Asset Management. According to the design team, around 81% of the original structure has been retained as part of a whole-building strategy aimed at reducing embodied carbon. The retrofit included the addition of new roof-level office floors with stepped roof terraces, expanding the building’s floor area to 140,000sq ft. Internally, the building includes a new ground floor entrance space acting as an ‘internal street,’ connecting Aldersgate Street with Bartholomew Place and providing a route to Farringdon’s Elizabeth Line entrance. The new façade features seventy-seven hand-made concrete fins. Their woven pattern is described by the architects as a reinterpretation of the site’s historic use as a textile factory and are designed to provide solar shading. Joe Sweeney, associate partner at Fletcher Priest Architects, said: “Tenant experience has been front of mind throughout the design process for 150 Aldersgate. From the biophilic terraces on every level to the sunlit, internal street, this building is designed to provide a sense of joy for those working here.” To the rear, the elevations use a blend of three brick types, intended to reflect the architectural character of nearby warehouse buildings.  150 AldersgateSource: Dirk Lindner 150 AldersgateSource: Dirk Lindner 150 AldersgateSource: Dirk Lindner 150 AldersgateSource: Dirk Lindner Braidwood Passage features a permanent tiled artwork by artist Alexis TeplinSource: Dirk Lindner 1/5 show caption Internal cores have been reconfigured and the basement car park converted to workspace. The scheme is rated BREEAM Excellent and EPC A. End-of-journey facilities include 250 cycle parking spaces and showers with access from Braidwood Passage. There has been a biodiversity net gain of 80% across the site, according to the design team. Braidwood Passage, which links Aldersgate Street with Cloth Street, has also been reworked as part of the development. The narrow alleyway, which has become a popular pedestrian route following the opening of the Elizabeth Line, was widened and refurbished. It now features a permanent tiled artwork by artist Alexis Teplin, created in collaboration with the design team and ceramics specialists Darwen Terracotta and Faience.

The centre will contain buildings up to nine storeys in height Plans designed by Gensler for a £1bn cancer research and treatment centre in south London have been submitted for planning by developers Aviva Capital Partners and Socius. The 1 million sq ft scheme would be built on a 12-acre site at the London Cancer Hub, which already contains The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust’s Sutton treatment centre. Aviva and Socius are working with landowner the London Borough of Sutton on the project, which will contain research and laboratory space for life sciences companies, academic researchers and clinicians. A series of proposed buildings up to nine storeys in height would range from large-scale facilities for global pharmaceutical and life sciences companies through to smaller lab and incubator spaces for start-ups. Aviva and Socius are hoping to start construction next year The scheme would also contain restaurants and cafes, a creche, an educational space and affordable homes for 220 key workers. Councillor Barry Lewis, leader of the London Borough of Sutton, said: “The London Cancer Hub will position Sutton as London’s global centre for oncology.  “Already recognised as a leading life science cluster in the capital, the site’s uniqueness lies in its current delivery of world-class cancer research, discoveries, and treatment all within a single location.” Aviva and Socius are hoping for a planning committee date this autumn with construction scheduled to start next year. The project team also includes structural engineer Arup and planning consultant Savills.

Howells also scoops two awards for Birmingham office scheme and a cafe at a grade I-listed country house Source: Nick CavilleCoventry University, College of the Arts & Society by BDP BDP’s transformation of two brutalist buildings for Coventry University has been named as RIBA’s West Midlands Building of the Year. The College of the Arts & Society scheme picked up the top prize at the regional awards at a ceremony yesterday evening which also saw Howells scoop two awards. BDP’s winning project added a contemporary extension linking the Maurice Foss and Graham Sutherland buildings to create one larger building which will be used to support the creative industries in Coventry. The renamed Delia Derbyshire building contains open-plan learning spaces aiming to encourage cross-disciplinary collaboration across various fields including architecture, design and media. It also includes lecture theatres, studio and workshop areas, immersive media rooms and collaborative spaces tailored to accommodate different learning needs. Howells was recognised for One Centenary Way, an office building in Birmingham which won Project Architect of the Year for Simon Pope, and a new cafe and kitchen at the grade I-listed Hanbury Hall in Worcestershire. The night’s other winners were University of Staffordshire Woodlands Nursery by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, which won both the Sustainability Award and Client of the Year, and a renovation of a 1930s fire station into 28 homes and retail space by KKE Architects. One Centenary Way, designed by HowellsSource: Hufton+Crow Hanbury Hall by HowellsSource: Greg Holmes University of Staffordshire Woodlands Nursery by Feilden Clegg Bradley StudiosSource: Daniel Hopkinson Old Fire Station by KKE Architects Ltd 1/4 show caption Tim Collett, associate professor at University of Nottingham and RIBA West Midlands jury chair, said the winning projects “demonstrate how constraints can become opportunities - elevating and enhancing the inherent potential of each site”. “Whether spanning a road tunnel, replacing a car park, or transforming underperforming existing structures into dynamic and exciting places to study and live, these projects deliver outstanding value,” he said. > Also read: Nine projects shortlisted for RIBA West Midlands Awards 2025 RIBA president Muyiwa Oki added: “This year’s winners exemplify architecture’s power to transform—turning spaces into places of connection, creativity, and care. Spanning the length of the UK and diverse in form and function, our 2025 winners show a deep sensitivity to place and a strong coherence of thought between all teams involved.  “Individually these projects inspire and uplift, but collectively, they remind us that architects do far more than design buildings, they shape the way we live, work and connect.”  RIBA West Midlands Award winners will now be considered for a RIBA National Award, which will be announced on 10 July.  The shortlist for the RIBA Stirling Prize for the best building of the year will be drawn from the RIBA National Award-winning projects later in the year. 

CGI showing hoe the 46-storey tower would look when built Historic England has called for Fletcher Priest’s plans for a 46-storey office tower in the City of London to be refused or withdrawn due to the scheme’s potential heritage impacts. The statutory consultee said the scheme, which has been designed for multinational investor Axa IM Alts, would harm the setting of the Roman Wall despite the proposals including a public exhibit displaying a surviving fragment of the structure. The 63 St Mary Axe scheme was submitted for planning in February and is scheduled to start construction in 2027 if approved, and complete by 2032. It would feature a double-height recessed area in the side of the tower at street level which would display a section of the 1,800-year-old Roman Wall, which runs beneath the site. Cross-section of the scheme’s proposed display area for a surviving section of the Roman Wall While Historic England said the feature would enhance the significance of the archaeological site, it said the proposed removal of an associated medieval burial ground “may cause a level of harm that would not be outweighed by the heritage benefit of showcasing the wall”. The burial ground, believed to date to around 1215, is the only remaining physical evidence of the two medieval churches it was associated with, St Augustine Papey and St Martin Outwich. St Augustine Papey was demolished in the 16th century during the dissolution of the monasteries, and St Martin Outwich was demolished in the 19th century. Historic England also raised concerns over the scheme’s impact on the Tower of London World Heritage site which it said “weighs very heavily” against the application. The group said: “Our advice does not preclude the redevelopment of the site, but these considerable heritage impacts together indicate that the proposals represent neither sustainable development as required by national planning policy, nor the optimum capacity for the site, as required by the London Plan’s design-led approach.  “It would be possible to redevelop the site without causing the harm we have described and we encourage that this should instead be pursued. We recommend that planning permission for the current proposals should therefore not be granted.” How 63 St Mary Axe will look from street level The building would contain around 85,000 sq m of grade A office space, 4,000 sq m of cultural and community space and outdoor gardens on all occupied levels, including a large terrace on the 27th storey split across two levels. The project team includes T&T Alinea as cost consultant, with CBRE acting as project manager, AKT II as structural and civil engineer, Arup as fire engineer, Velocity as transport consultant and Gustafson Porter & Bowman as landscape architect. Other members of the team include mechanical engineer Hilson Moran, facade engineer FMDC, daylight consultant GIA and planning consultant DP9. The City is expected to make a planning decision on the scheme later this year, following the local elections today (1 May) which will see the election of a new planning committee. Fletcher Priest is also working on two other tower proposals in the cluster, the 24-storey 55 Old Broad Street for Landsec and the 32-storey 55 Gracechurch Street for Tenacity. Axa IM Alts is a subsidiary of investment management firm Axa IM, which is itself a subsidiary of French multinational insurance firm Axa. Another division, Axa IM Real Assets, developed PLP’s 22 Bishopsgate in partnership with Lipton Rogers.

Bilbao Guggenheim architect’s only UK project set to be extended with cosntruction starting this year CGI of the approved extension to Prospect Place The next phase of Frank Gehry’s only UK project at Battersea Power Station in south London has been approved. Two mixed-use blocks containing a total of 306 homes and ground floor retail space will be added to the architect’s existing two-block Prospect Place scheme, which was completed in 2022 by Sir Robert McAlpine. Prospect Place, designed by Gehry’s practice Gehry Partners, is located at a prominent location close to Battersea Power Station tube station and serves as a gateway scheme to the wider redevelopment around the former power station. Designed for the Battersea Power Station Development Company, it is known for its highly recognisable white sculptural facade typical of Gehry’s work on projects including the  Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. The new phase of Prospect Place will have a “more modern aesthetic” to reduce the carbon footprint, according to the development company, and green roofs aiming to achieve a minimum 10% biodiversity net gain. One of the newly approved blocks, Prospect Place 3, is expected to include senior living apartments, to be managed by a specialist operator for over 65s and including access to additional care and on-site facilities. The other block, Prospect Place 4, will contain 122 homes, with both blocks sitting on communal podiums which extend to form a private garden for residents. Frank Gehry said: “These two buildings will help our masterplan, which was designed to create the feeling of a neighbourhood, come to fruition. In keeping the same body language of the original, we have continued the white material of these buildings, referencing the incredible history of the Nash Terraces.  “The winter gardens help break down the scale of the facades while also giving each unit a beautiful, light-filled space. Our goal from the beginning has been to make something that is unique to London and unique to this incredible new district in the city. I hope that we make the city proud.” Construction is expected to start later this year with completion anticipated in 2029.

Claudia Kenyatta and Emma Squire to take over heritage adviser this autumn Claudia Kenyatta, left, and Emma Squire, right Two former civil servants in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have been named as the next chief executives of Historic England. Claudia Kenyatta and Emma Squire will take the reins of the government heritage advisor on a job share arrangement when current chief executive Duncan Wilson retires in October. More than 200 people applied for the job in a recruitment process launched when Wilson, who has held the role since 2015, announced his retirement in January. Kenyatta worked at DCMS for nearly 12 years from 2007, ending her time at the government department as director of corporate strategy.  > Also read: Historic England chief executive announces retirement She subsequently became director of regions at Historic England in 2018, a role she has held as a job share with Squire since 2023. She also became a board trustee of the Black Cultural Archives in 2022 and chair of the Battersea Arts Centre in 2023. Squire started her career as a government advisor on nuclear energy policy before moving onto a string of roles at the Business Department and the Treasury. She joined Kenyatta at DCMS in 2018 as director of arts, heritage and tourism before moving to Historic England in 2023. Historic England chairman Neil Mendoza said he had been impressed by the pair’s “deep knowledge of the culture and heritage sectors, as well as insight and experience of the functioning of government”.  “Emma and Claudia have put considerable thought into their vision for Historic England. I have great confidence that their leadership will guide us through the coming years with clarity and purpose,” he said. Kenyatta and Squire said in a joint statement: “We are absolutely delighted to be appointed as chief executive of Historic England at such an exciting time for heritage.  “Historic England is an amazing organisation with expert and dedicated staff and a strong track record of supporting and celebrating the historic environment. “We’re looking forward to leading the organisation through its next chapter and making sure that heritage plays its full role in supporting people, communities and places.” Historic England has around 1000 staff and is based in London. It is a non-departmental public body sponsored by DCMS.

Government watchdog’s report published as Tony Blair brands net zero policies as ‘irrational’ One in four buildings could be at risk of flooding by 2050, according to the CCC report Labour has made no progress in addressing the risks of extreme weather caused by climate change since entering government, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) has said. The government’s statutory climate advisor called for more resources for climate adaptation planning as it warned the UK is still not appropriately prepared for an increase of heat waves, heavy rainfall and wildfires over the coming years. The CCC’s adaptation committee, which is required to report on the UK’s progress on climate adaptation every two years, published its latest report today. It said the “vast majority” of the assessment outcomes for the 2025 report share the same low scores as in 2023, with the committee finding “no evidence” to score a single outcome for adaptation delivery as “good”. “Notably, there has been no change in addressing this risk with the change in Government,” the report added. The report found 6.3 million properties in England are in areas at risk of flooding from rivers, the sea, and surface water, a number which is predicted to rise to around 8 million, or one in four, by 2050. Over a third of railway and road kilometres are currently at flood risk, predicted to rise to around half by 2050, according to the report, with rail systems and power lines also at risk from extreme heat. CCC chair Julia King said: “We have seen in the last couple of years that the country is not prepared for the impacts of climate change. We know there is worse to come, and we are not ready, indeed in many areas we are not even planning to be ready. The threat is greatest for the most vulnerable: we do not have resilient hospitals, schools, or care homes. Public and private institutions alike are unprepared. “We can see our country changing before our eyes. People are having to cope with more regular extreme weather impacts. People are experiencing increasing food prices. People are worried about vulnerable family members during heatwaves. “Ineffective and outdated ways of working within Government are holding back the country’s ability to be future-fit. Is this Government going to face up to the reality of our situation? Failing to act will impact every family and every person in the country.” The report coincides with an intervention yesterday from Tony Blair, who has called for a new approach to net zero as he argued government policies on limiting fossil fuels were “doomed to fail”. The former prime minister said the debate on climate change had become “irrational” and people were no longer prepared to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle that would have “minimal” effect on global emissions. Blair also said in a report by the Tony Blair Institute that a backlash against net zero policies threatened to “derail the whole agenda” as global demand for fossil fuels and airline travel continues to increase over the next 20 years. The report calls for more focus on emerging technologies such as carbon capture and storage and nuclear fusion, and a coordinated international effort to persuade the world’s biggest economies, such as China and India, to cut their emissions. Environment secretary Steve Reed said Blair had made “a valid and important contribution” to the climate change debate. Speaking on Times Radio this morning, Reed said: “I agree with much of what he said, but not absolutely every word and dot and comma of it. “But this government is moving to clean energy because it’s best for Britain. It’s more energy security for Britain.” Weather forecasters have predicted a spring heatwave in the UK, expected to peak tomorrow with temperatures of 29 degrees in London, could result in the hottest start to May on record.

FLOC, MAZi, Hyem, Stef Leach, Broaden, Thurston Illustration, SHED, Artis, Henna Asikainen – Positive Disturbance – Realising Brownfield Potential Ash Sakula with Human Nature – 1 House, 2 Homes... make a neighbourhood Clifton Emery Design, Nudge community builders, Millfields Trust, Plymouth Energy Community, Devon and Cornwall Planning Consultants – 300 Homes within a Union Street Mile 1/3 show caption The organisers of this year’s Davidson Prize have announced three finalists in the competition to design innovative ways to help the government meet its housing targets. Teams including Ash Sakula, Clifton Emery Design and FLOC are on the shortlist for the £10,000 winning prize, which will be awarded in June as part of the London Festival of Architecture. Each team will now receive £5,000 to develop their ideas and develop their visualisations with help from visualisation studio Hayes Davidson, which was founded by Alan Davidson, the late architect and namesake of the annual award. Teams were asked to focus on a community of 300 homes in a real location anywhere in the UK, with submissions looking at housing solutions for urban and suburban sites as well as protected rural locations. Jonathan Falkingham, 2025 judge and founder and director of Urban Splash, said: “We were looking for the exciting communication of bold and do-able ideas around delivering new homes and communities. It was a tough call selecting from a brilliant longlist of 16 diverse and imaginative concepts but our three finalists really nailed this year’s brief.” Lucy Watson,2025 judge and commissioning editor, house  and home at the Financial Times, added: “We felt the chosen three teams proposed solutions that were well thought out and contextual in their approach, whilst also providing a framework to be replicated across the country. It was very inspiring to see the thought and care put in by the teams to understand their community and its needs through collaboration with local organisations and public outreach.” The longlisted and finalist projects will be showcased on 10 June 2025 at Heatherwick Studio’s London headquarters, Making House in King’s Cross. The winning team will also receive a week of Hayes Davidson’s support to help them engage key decision makers in UK housing with their concept, to take it further and help them realise their ideas. Proposals by the three 2025 Davidson Prize finalists Ash Sakula with Human Nature – 1 House, 2 Homes… make a neighbourhood Ash Sakula with Human Nature: 1 House, 2 Homes… make a neighbourhood A new model that builds more homes on less land while enhancing the public realm, fostering active streets, and creating space for local economies and green infrastructure. On a test site at Seaham in County Durham, 1 House, 2 Homes doubles density without increasing footprint. By integrating seamlessly into existing streets it makes infill and large-scale urban regeneration faster, more viable and less carbon-intensive than car- dependent expansion. The innovative house typology ensures every home has its own front door and reduces per-home material use, operational carbon, and infrastructure strain while delivering high-quality, affordable homes at scale. Clifton Emery Design, Nudge community builders, Millfields Trust, Plymouth Energy Community, Devon and Cornwall Planning Consultants – 300 Homes within a Union Street Mile Clifton Emery Design, Nudge Community Builders, Millfields Trust, Plymouth Energy Community, Devon and Cornwall Planning Consultants: 300 Homes within a Union Street Mile A model for the delivery of community homes in Union Street, Plymouth that can be applied to high streets across the UK. 300 Homes sensitively places a sequence of affordable rented homes with co-living features into the rich grain of an established urban high street, with multiple small interventions reinforcing the equilibrium of the whole community as well as local economies. Made off site and designed to a 600mm grid (from cabinet to room to home) the concept is replicable and energy efficient, providing imaginative communal spaces such as shared kitchens, workspaces and food growing areas alongside secure and comforting private home space. FLOC, MAZi, Hyem, Stef Leach, Broaden, Thurston Illustration, SHED, Artis, Henna Asikainen – Positive Disturbance – Realising Brownfield Potential FLOC, MAZI, Hyem, Stef Leach, Broaden, Thurston Illustration, SHED, Artis, Henna Asikainen: Positive Disturbance - Realising Brownfield Potential Positive Disturbance is an adaptive framework for transforming brownfield sites into thriving places where homes, landscapes, communities and economies can grow together towards a reimagined future. On an ex- industrial test site at Clasper Village, Gateshead the project explores ways of redefining urban living as a dynamic, evolving ecosystem - rooted in place yet adaptable anywhere in the UK. As part of a living landscape, the lifetime neighbourhood of diverse tenures draws on positive ideas of degrowth to foster coexistence between humans, wildlife, and ecology while reimagining resources, movement, and sustainability.

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Club wants to increase capacity from just under 38,000 to 56,500 1/3 show caption Leeds United has unveiled images of what its plans to redevelop its Elland Road stadium will look like. The Championship club, which last week secured promotion to the Premier League after two seasons out of it, has appointed architect KSS to come up with the designs. The practice, which has worked on the redevelopment of Liverpool’s Anfield stadium as well as a new training ground for Leicester City, has come up with plans to increase capacity at Elland Road from just under 38,000 to more than 50,000. The current ground has been at the site since 1919 but is widely considered in need of an overhaul with the last major work being the building of the 14,500-seat East Stand which was started shortly after the club won the last of its three league titles in 1992. The club said it met with the city council last week, with councilors set to discus its proposals at a meeting next Thursday. It said the working proposals were a for a capacity of 53,000 with the aim of getting this up to 56,500 – making it the seventh largest ground in England. It added the work “will provide greatly improved general admission and hospitality facilities, to help meet the demand for tickets, with 26,000 supporters currently on the club’s season ticket waiting list”. Others working on the scheme include construction management consultant Rise and engineer Buro Happold. The club is holding a series of consultation events between 13 May and 23 May. All pictures courtesy of LUFC/KSS

Ely will lead the east London museum during its next phase of development following a major refurbishment in 2021 Source: MaeAlex Ely Alex Ely, founder of Mæ, has been appointed chair of the Museum of the Home by the secretary of state for culture, media and sport. His four-year term began in March 2025. The museum is one of the UK’s 16 department for culture, media and sport-sponsored museums and specialises in exploring domestic life in Britain across four centuries through its collections and events programme. Ely said: “I am delighted to have been appointed by the secretary of state. At the Museum of the Home we reveal stories of home life, past, present and future.” “No other museum in the country specialises in this particular aspect of our national heritage,” Ely added. “I look forward to advancing our mission to reveal and rethink the ways we live, in order to live better together.” The museum reopened in 2021 following an £18.8 million refurbishment. The project, designed by Wright & Wright Architects, sought to reconfigure its historic almshouse buildings and gardens to improve public access and interpret the collections in a more contemporary and inclusive way.   The Museum of the Home is housed in former 18th-century almshouse buildings in Hoxton The Museum of the Home, located in Hoxton, is housed in a terrace of Grade I-listed 18th-century almshouses originally built in 1714 by the Ironmongers’ Company. It first opened to the public in 1914 as the Geffrye Museum, named after Sir Robert Geffrye, whose bequest funded the almshouses’ construction. The museum originally focused on furniture and interiors, expanding over time to explore the broader social history of domestic life in Britain. The museum officially adopted the name Museum of the Home in 2019. Describing his future priorities for the unpaid chair role, Ely said: “My challenge is to ensure that the museum continues to be a vibrant place, welcoming to all, helping it on its path to be carbon neutral and growing its commercial income in line with the museum’s values.” Ely added: ”For anyone working in housing get in touch to find out how we work together to build knowledge and advance our understanding of what makes a good home.”

Survey of more than 1,450 architecture professionals highlights extensive unpaid overtime, low pay and poor mental health outcomes across the profession RIBA president Muyiwa Oki The RIBA has announced plans to strengthen workplace standards across its chartered practices following the publication of a new report detailing widespread concerns about pay, working hours and mental health in the profession. The RIBA Workplace and Wellbeing Report, based on a survey of over 1,450 architectural professionals conducted in summer 2024, found that 90% of practice employees work more than their contracted hours, with two-thirds receiving no compensation for the additional time worked. The findings indicate that overtime is a routine expectation across the sector, with employees typically contracted for 37.5 hours a week but working an average of 44 hours. The report highlights particular challenges for younger and early-career staff, with 76% of Part 1 architectural assistants and 13% of Part 2 assistants not receiving the Real Living Wage when unpaid overtime is taken into account. Across all respondents aged 21 to 24, 69% reported not earning the Real Living Wage, compared to 11% of those aged 25 to 34. RIBA president Muyiwa Oki said: “The findings of our survey make clear the need to address the culture of unpaid overtime, low wages and insufficient support for professionals. “Dignity, safety and fair treatment are the foundations of a healthy and thriving architecture sector, not optional extras.” The institute has pledged to review its code of practice for chartered practices to clarify mandatory employment standards, including fair pay and access to flexible working. It is also establishing a new task force to develop a strategy for improving working conditions, using the survey findings and wider industry research. The survey found that 54% of employees in practice viewed their role as detrimental to their mental health and wellbeing. Staff aged 25 to 34 were the most likely to report negative effects, with 59% describing their role as harmful to their mental health. Of respondents aged 21 to 24, 69% reported not earning the Real Living Wage, according to the RIBA report Interviews conducted as part of the research described a culture of normalised long hours, with participants citing unrealistic fee structures, poor resource management and an exploitative drive for profitability as key contributing factors. Oki said: “Architecture is such a brilliant, fulfilling career and my experiences have been nothing but positive, so the fact that so many in the profession I love are overworked, underpaid and unsupported is hard to hear.” The survey also found that women, people with caring responsibilities, and those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds experience particular challenges, including lack of support for flexible working and inequitable treatment. Only 35% of respondents agreed that their organisation supported a healthy work-life balance, and 29% agreed that mental health and wellbeing support was adequate. RIBA said it issued a practice note in November 2024 reminding chartered practices of their obligation to pay the Real Living Wage to all staff, including students and freelancers, and to compensate overtime with either pay or time off in lieu.  Oki added: “We want to attract architecture specialists from all backgrounds so that our built environment works for and reflects the needs of the wider society. “Clearly having a working culture that favours more established architects and people who do not have young children or other caring responsibilities is detrimental to that, so as a membership body we must do all we can to address the issue.” The full RIBA Workplace and Wellbeing Report is available on the RIBA website. >> Also read: Trainee architects have been failed for too long, ARB’s report demands better >> Also read: ARB research uncovers ‘staggering’ levels of discrimination and sexual misconduct in the architecture profession

Megaproject’s chief operating officer shares update on first phase of 170km scheme and BIG’s neighbouring port city Image showing the trench of The Line filled with concrete foundations and lengths of pipe 1/13 show caption The chief operating officer of The Line in Saudi Arabia has shared new pictures on social media showing how construction on the megaproject is progressing. Images posted on LinkedIn by Giles Pendleton show concrete foundations stretching along part of the 2.5km-long site of the linear scheme, which will consist of two parallel 500m-high skyscrapers. The Line is the most high-profile project in NEOM, a planned city on Saudi Arabia’s north west coast spanning more than 26,000sq km which also includes Oxagon, an octagonal port district being masterplanned by BIG. Pendleton said in the caption to his post: “A good snapshot of progress and a range of NEOM infrastructure projects from the water pipeline to new camps completing to massive amount of work in Oxagon harbour. All are going well and shows things from a very different viewpoint from the air.” The images include an aerial view of The Line’s trench and what appear to be large sections of pipes lying in concrete works ready for installation, along with wider shots showing the scale of the site. Once complete, the Line, which was designed by US studio Morphosis before its departure from the project last year, will stretch for 170km through the desert and house nine million people. Pendleton also shared pictures of a sprawling onshore wind farm and the project’s site office, a large grid of buildings surrounding a central area. Works on Oxagon are shown to be progressing, with enabling works underway around a series of newly built ports. Neom is envisaged to contain five main regions, also including Trojena, which will include a ski resort and a 330m tower designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, and a luxury marina complex called Sindalah.

Work set to take two years to completeDemolition contractor Deconstruct has been appointed to carry out work to dismantle the Grenfell tower in west London. The firm has been on site since 2017, having carried an assortment of jobs including clearance and safety monitoring. It is currently carrying out an annual protective wrapping of the tower. The government said it had awarded Deconstruct the £12.25m contract without competition because “any change in contractor would cause significant inconvenience and substantial duplication of costs”. Source: ShutterstockThe fire in 2017 killed 72 people News of the contract award follows the decision earlier this year by deputy prime minister Angerla Rayner to take down the tower rather than keep it as a permanent memorial. In a contract award notice, published last Friday, the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government added: “The published engineering advice is that the building should be deconstructed at the earliest opportunity as the best means to mitigate risks related to its condition. “The building can currently be safely deconstructed. The longer the building is left in place, the risk of the structure’s condition deteriorating to an unacceptable level, and the risks to the site operatives, who must go inside the building, increase.” Work is expected to begin later this summer after the eighth anniversary of the fire which killed 72 people in June 2017. The job is expected to take two years to complete.

Two regional events will seek to promote building reuse, local skills and cross-sector collaboration as part of a wider push to advance sustainable practices in the built environment Source: The King’s Foundation / Tom CampbellSarah Robinson and Muyiwa Oki The RIBA and The King’s Foundation have announced a new collaboration aimed at promoting retrofit and the reuse of existing buildings, with a series of regional events planned for 2025. The initiative builds on a pilot community reuse event hosted by the two organisations in Fleetwood, Lancashire in 2023, and seeks to encourage dialogue, share best practice, and support local action on building reuse. It comes at a time when retrofit is being positioned by many in the built environment sector as a critical strategy for reducing carbon emissions, preserving heritage and adapting to evolving community needs. Speaking about the initiative, RIBA president Muyiwa Oki highlighted the urgent need to prioritise retrofit, noting that “around 80% of the buildings that will be in use in 2050 already exist”. Retrofit has been a stated priority of Oki’s presidency. He said that if the profession was serious about cutting carbon emissions it must “continue to push retrofit up the national agenda”. Sarah Robinson, associate director at The King’s Foundation, emphasised the social as well as environmental importance of reuse, stating: “Repurposing existing buildings is vital not only because of their carbon value but because of their inherent social value as the backdrop to our daily lives and the glue of existing communities.” She said that reimagining older buildings could offer “exciting challenges for the next generation of architects”. The first event, titled Reimagining resources – Buildings, crafts and materials, is scheduled to take place on 3 July at The Glove Factory Studios in Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire. A second event is planned for September 2025 and will focus on the role of retrofit in creating healthy indoor environments. Both events are set to include expert panel discussions, interactive workshops and demonstrations showcasing practical approaches to reuse and material conservation. The King’s Foundation has previously supported projects such as the transformation of Dumfries House in Ayrshire, the reuse of Fleetwood Hospital in Lancashire, and the restoration of Drapers Hall in Coventry. Tickets for the first event will be available in May on the RIBA website. >> Also read: ‘Communicating the value of architecture’: why Muyiwa Oki wants to shift the debate on reuse

Proposed BTR scheme to include a cultural venue and student accommodation as part of the final phase of the £1.5 billion redevelopment. Source: Get LivingThe proposed scheme by Allies and Morrison Build-to-rent developer Get Living has submitted a revised planning application to Southwark council for the final phase of its regeneration of Elephant and Castle Town Centre. Designed by Allies and Morrison, the proposed development includes additional housing, purpose-built student accommodation and a cultural venue. Known as the West Site, the development will replace the current London College of Communication (LCC) buildings, which will be vacated when the college relocates to a new campus next door. The site becomes available in 2028 and forms the third and final phase of Get Living’s £1.5 billion masterplan for the area. Get Living’s updated plans for the West Site propose 507 rental homes in total, including 165 affordable units. The revised scheme also introduces 452 student bedrooms in response to what the developer describes as growing demand for student accommodation in the borough. According to Get Living, the student population in Southwark has increased by 25 percent over the past decade. Designs for the scheme seek to integrate a new public square and a major cultural venue into the site. Part of the existing LCC Workshop building is to be retained and repurposed to accommodate flexible space for performance, arts and community activities. The adaptive reuse of this structure is intended to reduce embodied carbon while retaining a physical connection to the site’s educational history. Get Living said the updated application responds to local feedback. Rick de Blaby, chief executive of Get Living, said: “As long-term stakeholders, we are committed to delivering a new meeting place where people can come together to live, work and socialise, delivering much-needed homes, including affordable homes, student accommodation and vibrant public spaces that bring energy and opportunity to the area.” Changes include the replacement of retail units along Pastor Street with nine additional homes. The architecture is intended to respond to the surrounding context, transitioning from the Elliott’s Row Conservation Area and nearby Victorian housing to the emerging Elephant and Castle town centre. The proposed energy strategy includes an all-electric, low-carbon system, with a design that adopts passive house principles. Increased greening and a focus on minimising emissions during both construction and occupation form part of the sustainability approach outlined in the planning submission. Allies & Morrison’s revised scheme builds on an earlier 2019 masterplan for the site. The West Site sits alongside The Elephant, the second phase of the wider scheme, due to open in 2026. That phase will provide 485 rental homes, 172 of which will be affordable, as well as 135,000 square feet of shops, restaurants and leisure uses, a new university campus, 55,000 square feet of workspace, and a new public square. The first phase of Get Living’s Elephant and Castle redevelopment, Elephant Central, was completed in 2017 and comprises 374 rental homes, 278 student bedrooms and over 65,000 square feet of commercial space, including a supermarket, gym and nursery.

Scheme branded as making a “total mockery” of council’s tall buildings policies View of the Glassmill scheme from Chelsea Terry Farrell’s proposals for a 29-storey mixed-use tower at the southern end of Battersea Bridge have been resoundingly refused by Wandsworth council’s planning committee. Councillors unanimously rejected developer Rockwell’s controversial 110-home Glassmill scheme at a committee meeting yesterday evening following a discussion lasting just over an hour in which no councillor voiced support for the plans. The decision follows an onslaught of local opposition to the application, which has received more than 2,000 objections from members of the public while two separate petitions launched by campaigners to scrap the scheme amassed a total of nearly 6,000 signatures. First submitted in early 2024, the scheme has been widely criticised for being too tall for the mostly low and mid-rise area next to Battersea Park despite lead architect Farrells shortening the building by five storeys on two occasions from the original 39-storey proposal. The final version of the building, which would also contain 7,000sq ft of office space and a 2,000sq ft riverside restaurant, is 10 storeys shorter and contains 60 fewer homes than the original submission, although its level of affordable housing had been increased from 25% to 50%.  The amendments failed to persuade Wandsowrth’s planning officers, who recommended the application for refusal ahead of yesterday’s committee meeting due to its “excessive and dominant” height and the harm it would cause to the character of the surrounding area. Officers also noted the plans would breach both Wandsworth’s 2023 local plan and the London plan. Councillor Caroline de La Soujeole said voting in favour of the application would “make a total mockery” of the council’s policies, adding the scheme was “quite simply the wrong building for the wrong site”. Councillor Ravi Govindia described the application as “grossly unacceptable”, suggesting Rockwell had sought to increase the height of the scheme to recoup its investment in the site. “The applicant, having paid an enormous sum of money for the site, is then recovering that investment by jacking up the building and I think it’s right that the applicant should get the message that it is not for us and the local community to bear the negative side of their bad economic decisions,” he said. In a letter read out to the meeting, councillors Jamie Colclough and Jessica Lee said: “Beyond simply turning down this proposal, our residents think it’s important to send a lot and clear message to developers that schemes like this that ignore local character and put profit ahead of improvement to the local area and people’s wellbeing just aren’t welcome here in Battersea.” The site is located in a low and mid-rise area next to Battersea Park The plans have also been opposed by a roll call of local and heritage groups including Historic England, which described the proposed tower as a “visually intrusive and incongruous addition to the townscape with wide reaching harmful impacts on the historic environment”. Other groups which have submitted objections include the Environment Agency, Wandsworth council’s conservation and heritage advisory committee, the Battersea Society, the Chelsea Society, the Wandsworth Society and the Putney Society. Wandsworth council’s own leader, Simon Hogg, has also made clear his own opposition in a series of social media posts including a post on X last June in which he said “a structure of this magnitude on this site would inflict more harm than good on the local area and its residents”. The council had been due to make a decision on the scheme last month before the application was pulled from the March committee’s agenda. A petition against the plans started by local campaigner Rob McGibbon has reportedly been signed by celebrities including Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Felicity Kendal and Anthea Turner. Rockwell managing director Nicholas Mee said: “Wandsworth Council has made the wrong call, one that shuts the door on urgently needed homes. It’s blocked 110 new properties, half at social rent, far exceeding the borough’s own affordable housing targets. Meanwhile, 11,000 people in Wandsworth are still waiting for a secure place to live. Across London, 80,000 children don’t have a permanent home.  “This scheme still has the potential to change things for the better. More than 1,800 residents and 100 local businesses backed it. They know what this means: fewer families in temporary accommodation. A stronger local economy. A fairer borough.   “The Spring Statement made it clear: housebuilding is a national priority and a route to growth. Wandsworth hasn’t just turned its back on the Labour Government - it’s turned its back on the people who need help the most.” The developer now has six months to appeal the decision. The project team for 1 Battersea Bridge Road includes DP9 on planning, Montagu Evans on townscape and heritage, Exterior Architecture as landscape architect, Velocity on transport, GIA on daylight, Ashton Fire as fire consultant and EOC as structural and civil engineer.

The Kansas City museum’s shortlist included Renzo Piano, Studio Gang and Kengo Kuma WEISS/MANFREDI’s proposals for the expansion of the Nelson-Atkins Museum The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City has selected New York-based practice WEISS/MANFREDI as lead architect for its planned 61,000 sq ft expansion, following an international competition that drew entries from nearly 200 firms across 30 countries. The scheme, which is now entering a further design development phase, seeks to open up the museum campus through a new north entrance, an events and learning lobby, and improved public access to the surrounding landscape. WEISS/MANFREDI’s concept also proposes a new “Commons” space and photography centre, with views to the original neoclassical building and adjacent sculpture park. The architectural language and massing are still to be finalised. Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi “We are deeply honored to work with The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art on this transformative project,” said Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, founding partners of WEISS/MANFREDI. “It is a rare and meaningful opportunity to reimagine the museum as a place where art, architecture and landscape converge to reveal a place of discovery and delight, and we look forward to collaborating with the museum and community to create a more transparent and welcoming cultural campus.” The museum stated that WEISS/MANFREDI was selected for its responsiveness to the brief and its alignment with the institution’s long-term goals. According to Julián Zugazagoitia, director and chief executive of the Nelson-Atkins, “Central to our competition was the need to respect the Nelson-Atkins’ original, neoclassical building, as well as our beautiful Bloch building, while also bringing something new to our campus.” 1/3 show caption The project will involve a partial renovation of the original museum building and landscape interventions intended to create a more accessible and welcoming campus. Community consultation is expected to continue throughout the design process. The competition was organised by Malcolm Reading Consultants. Finalists included Kengo Kuma & Associates, Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Selldorf Architects, Studio Gang, WEISS/MANFREDI and WHY Architects. Concept models were displayed in a public exhibition at the museum in late 2024. Founded by Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, WEISS/MANFREDI is known for its integration of architecture and landscape. Previous cultural and public realm projects include the Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden Visitor Center, and the Women’s Memorial at Arlington Cemetery.

Premier League outfit had initially proposed full rebuild under plans first revealed nearly three years ago 1/9 show caption Grimshaw has revised its plans to expand capacity of the North Stand at Aston Villa’s Villa Park stadium to 50,000. The club, which has revealed new images of the proposals, unveiled plans for the redevelopment back in August 2022 when a full rebuild was initially planned at a cost of around £100m. But the club has since decided it wants to maintain Villa Park’s matchday capacity of just over 42,500 while the work is being carried out. It said: “Through a robust design process, Aston Villa has found a way to adapt and modernise the existing structure of the North Stand without losing any seats during the season. With disruption to current fans mitigated, Aston Villa is able to move forward with the planning process.” It added it would submit an updated planning application for the job with Birmingham city council next month. The scheme first got the green light in October 2023. And the Premier League club told Building: “The club has started the tendering process with contractors for the required enabling works as well as the main construction package for the project.” Work has been stalled because of issues around the redevelopment of a nearby railway station despite the plans. This year’s Champions League quarter finalists said: “The club has always been clear that increases to the capacity of the stadium must be done in tandem with improvements to the local transport network. Since the expansion plans were announced in 2022, Mayor Richard Parker has committed in his campaign manifesto to rebuild Witton station.” But Parker has pledged to make the required upgrades meaning the club is now pressing on with the redevelopment. It said the plans promised by the mayor, which include larger and safer queuing systems, would help the station double the current passenger handling capability of the station to 10,000 passengers per matchday. The wider project team for the Villa Park expansion includes cost consultant Core Five, town planning and transport consultant WSP, structural engineer David Smith Associates and MEP engineer ME Engineers. The club has said that it wants the work completed in the second half of 2027 ahead of Villa Park hosting Euro 2028 matches the following summer.

Tim Galloway says around 75% of applications are still being rejected because of missing or flawed information Around 75% of gateway 2 applications for higher risk buildings are still being turned back by the BSR The deputy boss of the Building Safety Regulator has blamed a lack of industry design expertise for contributing to gateway 2 delays as he admitted “underestimating” how hard the transition to the new regime would be for firms. Health and Safety Executive deputy director Tim Galloway told Building Design he had assumed demonstrating fire and structural safety in higher risk schemes, including residential buildings above 18m, would be “something that [industry firms] would already be able to do”. Around 75% of applications for higher risk schemes, including residential buildings above 18 metres, are still being turned back by the regulator at the gateway 2 stage for pre-construction approval. While applications which are accepted are also being delayed by the regulator’s outsourcing model for assembling technical teams, which has struggled with a lack of capacity in the building control sector, flawed applications submitted by project teams are understood to be the main cause of hold ups. Galloway said gateway 2 applicants “don’t quite as yet understand what is expected of them” despite several years of signalling by the Health and Safety Executive, which contains the regulator, on what the requirements of the new regime would be. The regulator is currently rejecting around 40% of gateway 2 applications because they fail to meet requirements and another 35% because they are missing key information, sometimes of a “basic” level, Galloway said. In one case, an application was returned as the applicant had failed to provide any material demonstrating how a scheme complied with building regulations and instead had simply written “it complies” on the application form. Others have failed to demonstrate the foundations would be strong enough to support the building or that evacuation routes would be kept free of smoke in the event of a fire, according to Galloway. “This is fairly fundamental stuff and standards that are at least a decade and a half old in terms of what’s intended to be achieved, and that’s quite worrying that applications are not able to show fire safety and not able to show structural safety, which one would have expected,” he said. While the BSR had done modelling on how the industry would respond to the new regime, Galloway admitted this had “not survived contact with reality”. Although he said some industry firms had put measures in place to prepare for the new regime before it came into force in October 2023, he said others had taken “more of a wait and see approach and are now trying to catch up a little”. Galloway led the team which was producing guidance in the run-up to the new regime but confessed some of it had been kept “conceptual” for longer than expected because of delays in the legislation. He said the BSR is now carrying out “intense” work with the Construction Leadership Council to provide more detailed guidance but called for industry firms to take the lead. “I want industry to write that guidance, because it will be better than anything I could write,” he said. “You need people who have got that deep construction industry experience, who understand the process, understand the right phraseology, understand how the designers and the architects and the other players interact, because they will write it with that in mind.” Asked if he would do anything different in light of the delays to gateway 2 approvals, he said it “would be to recognize that this might be more of a change for the industry than I’d anticipated”. “When one looks at the applications that we’ve received, and some of them not being able to demonstrate structural safety, not being able to demonstrate fire safety, perhaps I thought of that as being something that they’d already be able to do, and it would be more about helping them through the process of demonstrating that in a different way.  “What we have learned, I think, is that there’s more of a need for that investment in upfront design, that thinking to be done by those submitting the applications earlier, and that’s something that has required more transition for the industry than I think we’d expected.” The British Property Federation blamed “significant delays” at the BSR for a 14% decrease in the number of build-to-rent homes under construction in the first quarter of this year compared to last year in a report published earlier this week. The paper showed London has seen the steepest fall, down 18% year-on-year to 15,000 homes under construction, while the regions dropped by 12% to 34,870. Student housing developer Unite has said the issues were adding six months to the average length of build programmes while Quintain has been waiting more than nine months for sign-off on one of its schemes at Wembley Park.

Core Five, Arup and Elliott Wood on team working up plans to transform and extend one of the West End’s tallest towers View of the existing TP Bennett-designed tower at 33 Cavendish Square Berkeley Estate Asset Management (BEAM) will submit a planning application for its proposed transformation of one of the West End’s tallest towers this autumn. The developer unveiled its plans for the 33 Cavendish Square scheme yesterday, publishing a series of early images showing how the KPF-designed retrofit of the 21-storey tower next to Oxford Circus could look when built. The existing 1960s building, designed by TP Bennett, was originally home to BHS and includes a two-storey podium and a six-storey block along Oxford Street previously home to the London College of Fashion before its move to new purpose-built premises at the Olympic Park. This component will be demolished and replaced by a new seven-storey retail, food and beverage block while the site’s tower will be retained and transformed into grade A office space. BEAM has now revealed the full project team, which includes Core Five as QS, Gardiner & Theobald as project manager, Elliott Wood as structural engineer, Arup on MEP and Tavenor on townscape. CGI view of the proposed 33 Cavendish Square scheme behind Oxford Circus Planning consultant Newmark and engagement consultant Kanda were confirmed as being on the team yesterday. BEAM is understood to be looking at a four-year programme for completing the scheme but has said it is too early to reveal a start date. The existing development has a total floorspace of around 60,000 sq m. The scheme is being billed as a new cultural hub for Westminster aiming to attract creative workers back to the West End from the east of the capital. Around 25,000 sq ft of cultural spaces covering much of the lower floors will include a 300-seat auditorium, makerspaces and creative studios arranged around a triple height atrium, BEAM said. A first round of consultation is open at 20 Cavendish Square today with more details of the scheme expected to be announced at a second consultation round this summer.

Approval follows tussle with Ealing council over affordable contribution Source: HTA DesignCourtyard view of the now consented development which has been designed by HTA HTA Design has been given the green light to progress with the final phase of a 1,345-home estate regeneration project in west London. The third phase of the Friary Park scheme, designed for Peabody and Mount Anvil, will see 693 homes delivered in Acton after updated proposals for the development were approved by Ealing council. The three-phase regeneration scheme replaces 225 social rent dwellings and five market homes that previously occupied the site. Outline approval for this phase of the scheme had previously been granted in 2020 and 2023, with the latter version granting permission for 576 new homes, 133 of which would have been affordable. Updated proposals submitted last year sought to increase the maximum height of the scheme from 22 to 24 storeys and add 117 more homes, without any additional affordable contribution. Amendments to the design have added 117 homes After discussions between the applicant, the council and their respective representatives, a figure of £4.2m surplus was agreed and the applicant amended its proposals to incorporate additional social rented homes in place of 15 market sale units. It means the third phase will now provide a total of 148 affordable homes. Proposals for Friary Park also include a 450 sq m community centre, a community square, and a 5,000 sq m play area. It will also feature an outdoor gym, a cycle hub, a climbing wall, a basketball court, a community kitchen and allotments.

Working in Canada will become easier for UK architects from next month following a deal signed between regulators in the two countries. Arb is signing a mutual recognition agreement today with Canada’s Regulatory Organizations of Architecture in Canada, also known as the Regroupement des Ordres d’Architectes du Canada (ROAC), to set up a more streamlined process to practice architecture in the two countries. The UK government said the deal would pave the way for a new generation of British architects The UK regulator said the deal would create “exciting new opportunities across the Atlantic”. It is the latest in a string of similar agreements which Arb has signed with foreign countries aiming to facilitate overseas collaboration using new powers made possible by the UK’s exit from the EU. Since 2023, the UK regulator has established reciprocal arrangements with the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, and Hong Kong. Arb chair Alan Kershaw said he was “so very excited” to see a new route for registered architects open up following the latest deal with Canada. “The agreement opens significant new opportunities for architects in the UK and Canada to collaborate, building on the strong professional partnerships that already exist between the two countries. It will at the same time maintain the high standards the public have a right to expect,” he said. > Also read: ARB launches comprehensive overhaul for registration of international architects ROAC chair Ian R McDonald added: “This agreement further strengthens the longstanding and historic relationship between the UK and Canada, as Commonwealth partners.  “Architecture is a global profession – streamlining cross-border registration is key to expanding opportunities for qualified architects, while still upholding professional standards. We are delighted to have been part of the negotiations and final signing, and look forward to the new prospects this agreement creates for architects on both sides of the Atlantic.” UK minister for trade policy and economic security Douglas Alexander said the “landmark agreement” would help pave the way for a “new generation of British architects”. The new route will be open to Arb-registered applicants from 14 May. Interested applicants can visit the Arb’s website to find out more.

Retrofit and extension of 33 Cavendish Square being drawn up for Berkeley Estate Asset Management  CGI view of the proposed 33 Cavendish Square scheme behind Oxford Circus KPF has unveiled plans for a transformation and extension of one of the tallest buildings in the West End. The practice has been appointed by Berkeley Estate Asset Management (BEAM) to design a retrofit of 33 Cavendish Square, a 21-storey office and retail tower next to Oxford Circus. The 1960s building, originally occupied by British Home Stores, also includes a two-storey podium and a six-storey block along Oxford Street previously home to the London College of Fashion before its move to new purpose-built premises at the Olympic Park. The scheme would retain over half of the building, including the basement and its highly prominent tower, while creating a new seven-storey mixed-use block on Oxford Street containing cultural spaces. How the street scene around Oxford Circus currently looks with the existing building at 33 Cavendish Square in the background BEAM said it wants the new complex to become a “flagship hub” for creative enterprises in the West End through cultural curations, programmes and commissions with local organisations. The ground floor will offer food and beverage space, while the upper floors will be reserved for grade A office space. KPF principal John Bushnell said the proposals are aiming to create a “distinctive sense of character related to the local area and facilitate a sense of pride on one of the capital’s most renowned streets”.  “The heart of the development will be dedicated to culture, ensuring that the community spirit is embodied within the spaces and uses alongside other public offers to support the wider activation of Oxford Street,” he said. The project team so far includes planning consultant Newmark and engagement consultant Kanda. A first round of public consultation opened this week with another due to take place later in the year before the submission of a full planning application.

Scheme designed by Assael Architecture for Birmingham developer Worthearly Ltd CGI of how the scheme will look when built Plans by Assael Architecture for a 300-home development in Melton Mowbray have been given the green light. The scheme for Birmingham developer Worthearly Ltd will be located on a brownfield site in the heart of the Leicestershire market town and feature mostly two and three-storey homes with some apartment buildings. Arranged across three distinct character areas, the development will include taller homes on wide tree-lined avenues and lower-scale mews streets, along with a pedestrianised street for play and community gathering. The scheme also features a new square facing onto Melton County Park, providing a new entrance to the park and a riverside edge to the south. Assael’s design features a red brick palette and detailings including arched doorways which have taken inspiration from the town’s historic buildings. Original proposals included an affordable component, and the developer had been in discussions with Heylo Housing. However a viability assessment found ”significant land contamination on the site as a result of the previous industrial use of the site”. The remediation necessary meant ”contributions towards areas such as highways, education, affordable housing and the NHS would render the scheme to be unviable,” according to planning documents. However, the developer did agree to make a contribution of more than £4m towards schools in the area. While planning officers said it was “regrettable” that a development of its size could not make significant contributions to affordable housing and infrastructure, there remained ”a number of issues weighing in favour of granting consent”, including the dereliction of the site.

Revised application has changed office buildings to student resi and affordable homes Aerial view of the revised proposals TP Bennett’s redesign of a major commercial scheme in Canada Water is set to be approved by Southwark council next week. The firm’s revised application for half of the Dockside Canada Water scheme, which has transformed two buildings from offices to student accommodation and affordable housing, has been recommended for approval by the council’s planning officers ahead of a council meeting on 29 April. It comes four months after the four-block scheme’s developer Art Invest Real Estate submitted its rethink of the development, which had originally been entirely commercial and had been granted outline approval in 2023. The other half of the site, plot A, consisting of a 25-storey office building designed by BIG and a 12-storey office block designed by HWKN, remains unchanged. TP Bennett’s proposals for plot B would see the construction of a 26-storey tower containing 742 student beds and an eight-storey residential block containing 75 affordable homes. CGI of the proposed student accommodation tower AIRE has said the changes “represent a natural evolution of the scheme and respond to a clear need for additional places for students to live in Southwark”. Purpose built student accommodation is among the most buoyant property sectors in London, with the market growing by 12% in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to planning firm Turley. Southwark council’s planning offices described the scheme as “exemplary in design” and said it would make a positive contribution to the surrounding townscape. The project team on plot B also includes project manager Gardiner & Theobald, masterplanner BIG, civil and structural engineer Ramboll, landscape architect Townshend, planning consultant DP9, facade engineer Arup, transport consultant WSP and heritage consultant Tavernor. The plot’s changes are part of a wider shake-up of the Canada Water development area following British Land’s decision to radically redesign its neighbouring scheme. The developer announced plans earlier this year to increase the height of 11 buildings on its 3,000-home site by up to 13 storeys, including all residential buildings, which would be made taller to accommodate second staircases. The two projects together would create a substantial new high rise district in south-east London, with construction on British Land’s Allies & Morrison-designed development already well underway where Mace and Wates have been working for several years.

Site has been given £40m makeover with project team including Gardiner & Thoebald The space is home to a large collection of steam engines Images of what Carmody Groarke’s revamped Science and Industry Museum in Manchester will look like have been released ahead of its reopening this summer. The site has been given a £40m makeover over the past five years with the grade II-listed Power Hall due to open in time for the school holidays. It has been closed since 2019 with other work seeing a grade I-listed house at the museum restored and turned into a holiday property. The Power Hall is the centrepiece of the museum and houses a collection of steam engines that were built in the Greater Manchester area with work on the building including roof and timber repairs, installing new windows and doors as well as carrying out wider building conservation. The revamped Power Hall will open this summer after closing in 2019 Carmody Groarke has drawn up work at the Power Hall while others working on the overhaul include main contractor HH Smiths and project manager Gardiner & Theobald. The project team also includes heritage consultant Donald Insall Associates, QS Appleyard & Trew, structural engineer Conisbee, M&E engineers Max Fordham and Advisian and exhibition designer Studio Mutt. As well as the reopened Power Hall, the museum is has begun the search for an architect for a new Wonderlab gallery – an interactive space for children – ahead of a proposed opening in 2027.