Completed for the London Borough of Newham, the Plashet Road housing complex consists of 100 per cent affordable dwellings, 74 per cent of which are family units.Levitt Bernsteins first social housing project designed to Passivhaus standards has achieved Passivhaus Classic certification a first for a scheme delivered by Newham Council.The site is surrounded by 12 retained mature plane trees on three sides, and the building responds sensitively to the sites context by being set back from the street, with spacious green areas and new planting around the perimeter. This, together with a landscaped courtyard, is designed to enhance biodiversity on the site.AdvertisementThe elevational treatment offers a modern interpretation of the surrounding vernacular, drawing on patterns and brickwork found in neighbouring streets, with a continuous diamond pattern running along the top of a red brick plinth.The dual- and triple-aspect homes optimise natural ventilation and daylight, supporting low-carbon living while minimising maintenance costs.Architects viewPlashet Road was the first Passivhaus scheme for many on the project team. An early decision was taken to make the building as responsive to Passivhaus principles as possible, letting these inform the design as it developed.Conceived as a courtyard development, initially the living spaces and balconies faced on to the courtyard, with access decks wrapping around the outer perimeter. A fundamental design decision was taken in response to Passivhaus principles to flip the arrangement so the majority of living spaces and balconies instead faced west or south, with access decks facing east or north.This optimised the layouts in response to the sun's path around the building, with living spaces benefiting from solar gain in winter months and higher daylight levels, balconies benefiting from a sunnier aspect at times they are more likely to be used, and access decks in locations where these benefits are less critical.This arrangement also brings more activity to the courtyard and reduces the lengths of access decks while ensuring active street frontages.Nicola Jaques, associate, Levitt BernsteinPassivhaus consultants viewWe are delighted to have been part of the design and delivery of these new Passivhaus-certified, low-carbon homes. The rigour of the Passivhaus standard helped focus on delivering a high-quality building, through quality checks of calculations, documentation and construction by the independent Passivhaus Certifier, Warm. The outcome will be low energy bills and low carbon emissions for residents over the entire life of the building.Will South, Passivhaus Designer, EtudeClients viewWhen Newham Council decided to redesign an existing scheme for the Plashet Road site in West Ham, opportunities arose for a refreshed client brief, to create a more efficient development and to provide homes that would be aligned with the councils emerging energy strategy.The design phase was characterised by a very intensive period of meetings between the clients design and cost consultants and the design team members, exploring and navigating principles of Passivhaus, complex details and specifications.It was a steep learning curve for many, and at the same time extremely enjoyable working with Levitt Bernstein and the energy consultant Etude, which threw their collective knowledge and enthusiasm into it to deliver a very energy-efficient scheme at large scale. The reward for their hard work is the recently received Passivhaus certificate.Geertje Kreuziger, ex-design adviser to Newham Council, (worked on the Plashet Road scheme from inception to planning application submission) Source:Levitt BernsteinProject dataStart on site March 2021Completiondate January 2024Gross internal floor area 6,559m2Gross (internal + external) floor area 7,411m2Site area 4,093m2Form of contract or procurement route Design and BuildConstruction cost UndisclosedArchitect Levitt BernsteinClient London Borough of NewhamStructural engineer Heyne Tillett SteelM&E consultant Max FordhamQuantity surveyor Philip Pank PartnershipPassivhaus consultant EtudeSustainability consultant XC02Daylight consultant XC02Fire consultant Joule GroupLandscape consultant Levitt BernsteinAcoustic consultant Max FordhamProject manager Role carried out by London Borough of NewhamPrincipal designer Levitt BernsteinCDM coordinator Role carried out by London Borough of NewhamBuilding control Newham Building ControlMain contractor Bugler DevelopmentsCAD software used RevitNB: The project team listed is the pre-planning team. Levitt Bernstein and Etude were the only consultants to continue post-planning, working for the contractor along with their delivery team.Environmental performance dataSpace heating demand 19.1 kWh/m2/yrHeat load 9.9 W/m2Energy use intensity (EUI) 48.8 kWh/m2/yrAirtightness at 50pa 0.86 m3/h.m2On-site energy generation 0%Overall area-weighted u-value (including windows and doors) 0.335 w/m2kOverall area-weighted u-value (excluding windows and doors) 0.121 w/m2kAnnual CO2 emissions 2.0 kgCO2/m2