Woolwich Housing
Address the street as urban theatre
The brief was to deliver a minimum of 110 new apartments in Woolwich, east London.
The site forms part of the wider regeneration of the area, spreading east from the Docklands to the O2 to the Olympics, and served by Crossrail, City Airport and the Docklands Light Railway.
Within the civic centre of Woolwich, the site is currently occupied by low-rise housing.
New development on neighbouring sites dwarfs the scale of the existing housing — the scale has changed from suburban to urban town centre.
Site plan, option with 3 cores.
Study of site pedestrian permeability, to open up opportunities by connecting and interacting with surrounding sites.
This study for a typical floor plan allows for 3 cores serving a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bed apartments on each floor.
The structure of the building is envisioned as a flexible framework, allowing a mix of unit types which can be adapted and interchanged over time
Concept sketch of the new street elevation.
The sequence of facades is designed to bring continuity and character to the town centre streetscape. By setting back the buildings we create space for public realm and private gardens along the street, creating a more active urban frontage.
On the upper levels the facade filters the apartments behind as a backdrop to the urban theatre.
