case study
neighbourhood’s proximity to central London, the project presented the clear challenge as well as opportunity of delivering affordable homes for rent in what would normally be an unaffordable area. “Islington is a very sought-after location in the city, and The Joinery is an ideal destination for people seeking to get on the housing ladder in a desirable part of London. It is close to The City and also has excellent transport links,” said Dick Mortimer, director of development and sales for Family Mosaic for the scheme’s developer United Living. “The Joinery offers people on local housing waiting lists an opportunity to live in an expensive area, affordably.” The locality has a range of Ofsted ‘Good’ and ‘Outstanding’ rated schools and access to tube and overground stations including Archway and Holloway Road, making it a highly desirable place to live for a wide range of tenants. While delivering family homes was a key objective, the project also
provided smaller flats suited for couples and single people as well as accessible homes for residents with disabilities on the ground floor. Family Mosaic also wanted to ensure the scheme was “an exemplar of low
energy” and embedded a strong commitment to delivering a variety of sustainable solutions in the project which would also help residents benefit from low utility bills.
Joining the phases
The background to redeveloping the Joinery itself was a first phase which saw the housing association initially purchasing a site on nearby Fairbridge Road, just off its junction with the major route of Hornsey Road. Their contractor Willmott Dixon constructed two new blocks of 80 homes – 51 of which are social homes – to high sustainability requirements. Family Mosaic then hatched the plan to develop a new north-south
connecting street (Charles Street) to the former entrance of the Joinery, which “unlocked” the potential to develop it, said United Living’s Dick Mortimer: “That phase allowed Phase 2 (The Joinery) to be developed.” The Fairbridge Road development is now successfully integrated with the five blocks of the Joinery section of the scheme.
Meeting sustainability objectives
While transforming a derelict industrial building into homes was a challenge in itself, Family Mosaic’s plan to deliver a highly sustainable project – achieving a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating – added further pressures. BREEAM is also claimed to be able to provide benefits however by acting as a useful sustainability score card and means of focus on achieving the goals for design teams. BRE says it was developed to “help investors, developers, design and construction teams and occupiers to use natural resources more efficiently.” The association worked with sustainability consultants EcoFirst to ensure
various aspects of the scheme – from the combined heat and power system serving all homes to the green and photovoltaic (PV) roofs, efficient water fixtures and insulation – would serve residents for years to come. The Joinery’s careful layout and high performing thermal envelope meant the project achieved the highest possible credits within BREEAM Domestic Refurbishment. The scheme also claimed BREEAM’s residential award earlier this year. In addition, The Joinery achieved a Secured by Design certification and met the Lifetime Homes Standard requirements.
Tenure mix
The Joinery’s 52 warehouse inspired and new-build flats consisted of 20 homes for affordable rent, 10 for shared ownership and 22 for private sale. The scheme, backed by funding from the Greater London Authority, was
also cross-subsidised from revenue by sales and shared ownership. Together with the 80 Fairbridge Road apartments, there are 132 homes in total across the development.
The housing association provided three four-bed three-storey
townhouses, three three-bed flats and four two-bed flats, while also adding five two-bed wheelchair-friendly units at the ground floor. All homes also have private garden or a terrace/balcony. Family Mosaic hopes the mix of tenures would promote a sense of belonging to a shared community, while uniting residents from a range of backgrounds would promote diversity and nurture inclusivity.
Conclusion
Communities secretary Sajid Javid commented at the Conservative conference, “Tackling housing shortfall isn’t about political expediency. It’s a moral duty.” Since then, the Government has vowed to make changes to the planning rules so that housing developments are prioritised on brownfield land, representing a key part of the newly-announced £3bn Home Building Fund. While there are a raft of fine words on the potential, Family Mosaic’s The
Joinery, as well as its wider development on Fairbridge Road, provides a practical example of how a sensitive approach to land and the reuse of existing buildings can create a characterful, sustainable scheme that strengthens the neighbourhood’s heritage and sits comfortably within the wider community. Furthermore, the scheme demonstrates that with sensitive design and
placemaking, different tenures can coexist in the same community without friction if a balance between privacy and community is achieved.
© Tim Crocker via Family Mosaic
“Family Mosaic, which is one of London’s largest housing associations with over 25,000 homes for rent, is making a concerted effort to buck the trend”
www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMM November 2016 | 27
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