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property advisers Savills and the former head of planning at a trio of London borough councils. Singleton, a qualifi ed


architect and the borough’s divisional director of major sites, arrived in January, lured by the ‘sheer quantum’ of Newham’s regeneration prospects and the chance to infl uence growth on such a big scale. He says: ‘Newham matters so much to the future of London; we have to make it work... Newham is not near the end [of its regeneration] and we are not tied to going down a particular route.’ T is is good news for


architects. Singleton and East are both open-minded about the specifi cs of what happens next, where it happens and about who does it. Singleton says: ‘A hundred diff erent languages


ACADEMY Make’s recently approved joint university facility in Stratford


are spoken in Newham and [similarly] we want a diversity of practices working here.’ Not that either East or Singleton is willing to hand out projects to the fi rst practice they meet.. ‘Don’t just come and ask us for


work,’ says Singleton. ‘Come with a developer and some inventive, sustainable thinking. It’s about neighbourhood plan work, as well


‘Don’t just come and ask us for work. Come with a developer and some inventive, sustainable thinking. It’s about neighbourhood plan work’


as looking at ‘meanwhile’ uses. T ere is an amazing opportunity for entrepreneurial architects.’ T e borough is open to design


competitions, too. Having selected Studio Octopi to design a £220,000 ‘Olympic’ kiosk for Meridian Square through a contest organised with the Architecture Foundation, it has now launched another competition to fi nd interim uses for three brownfi eld sites in the Royal Docks. It is here, in this expansive semi-wasteland, where there is most scope for invention. East, the council’s divisional


RENEWAL The ExCel Centre in the heart of the docks regeneration zone


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director of development service, says: ‘T e council owns large tracts of land, which in reality are not going to be built on for two or three years. T ere is scope for


MYPLACE Hawkins\Brown’s proposed Plashet Park MyPlace scheme


competitions and to encourage young fi rms. Here we have the ability to infl uence [what architects are used]. And, where we are the major landowner, we can steer it very explicitly. ‘But we wouldn’t want to


be condemned to a stylistic straitjacket. It’s about getting really good schemes delivered … and we generally try to work collaboratively with developers from an early stage.’ Interest is already growing in


the docks. In September, Siemens secured planning permission for a £30 million Wilkinson Eyre and Pringle Brandon-designed visitor centre at the western end. Elsewhere in the borough,


at Sugar House Lane, Ikea is working on a pioneering homes scheme with Anglo-German masterplanners ARC-ML. Other


practices to have recently won work in Newham include Rick Mather, with its £12 million Integrated Front Offi ce scheme at East Ham; Make, with a new joint facility for the University of East London and Birkbeck University of London; and Hawkins\Brown, with its Plashet Park MyPlace scheme. However, the development-


friendly attitude has been accused by some of ‘bis.oosterism’ at the expense of integrated long-term urban planning. Where, they say, for instance, is Newham’s Big City Plan? In response, Singleton says: ‘It’s a completely diff erent landscape here. Birmingham is a big city with one heart. In Newham part of the role is creating new centres. T e borough needs a plan which gathers together its economic future, as well as the core strategy.’ Meanwhile Newham continues


to look at how to harness the benefi t of the 2012 Games, long after the circus has rolled out of town. East says: ‘Rather than seeing the Olympic Park as a cash cow, we need to look at what we want it to do for Stratford – namely, how it can infl uence what goes on around it. [T e Olympic Park] can’t be seen as an island.’


SIEMENS The Wilkinson Eyre and Pringle Brandon-designed Siemens pavilion visitor centre at the Royal Docks


aj 02.12.10


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