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PROJECT REPORT: RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
A SCANDINAVIAN VIEW OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING White Arkitekter says Phase 1 embodies "Scandinavian urban design principles of social wellbeing" Photos © Paul Riddle
whether it's like a straight linear block, or whether you have a kink. As long as you don't have any cut corners or bay windows or other things; the facades are straight. They had no problem with the kinks, which was refreshing.”
The massing is as a result, “layered,” WEST PHASE 1
Storey heights: 3-13 RIBA Stages: 1-3 plus design guardianship post-planning to RIBA Stage 6
Project start: February 2019 Planning approved: November 2019 Construction start: January 2020 Construction end: March 2022 Housing tenures: 40% affordable rent, 39% market rent, 13% target rent, 8% LAR
says Thiel – different elements that are actually within the same block look like separate buildings depending on where they’re viewed from. The architects “bookended” the north and south ends of the site with the two taller elements to establish Phase 1 as a landmark at the edge of the development.
Special attention was paid to the landscape and public realm, with a “strong focus on providing spaces for all to enjoy,” says White Arkitekter. The three buildings have been located in a way that “facilitates active use of the outdoor communal space” and the landscape design strategy “helps to develop the character of the different areas within the site, enhancing legibility, and strengthening identity,” contributing to the overall welcoming feeling the architects were striving to realise.
WEST PHASE 2
Storey heights: 9-20 RIBA Stages: 1-3 planning & design guardianship during Stages 4-5 Project start: January 2020 Planning approved: March 2021 Construction start: July 2021 Construction end: Spring 2024
Facades
A framework of facade types has been developed for each block, lending a sense of variety to the project, whilst defining the buildings as separate entities. They do however adhere to the same overarching design principles which makes them clearly identifiable as parts of the same development. The general principles set out a series of criteria, such as window sizes, balcony sizes, types of balustrades
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and copings, which then vary in colour and appearance between each block. The result is a series of “well defined, pared-back facades that offer a generous sense of depth and articulation.”
The various buildings in Phase 1 all have reinforced concrete frames but a mix of facades, however the majority have a brick rainscreen to tie in with the local vernacular. A light colour brick mix was chosen for Phase 1, which catches the sun well and provides a less forbidding presence along Abbey Road.
While all the elevations are in the same
brick, there is a darker hue on the ground floor, and the elevations either side of the ‘kinks’ have subtle differences, simply brought by altering the mortar colour, and that of balconies and windows, to break down the facades visually within an overall coherent unity.
Phase 2
There are five towers in the ongoing Phase 2, ranging between nine and 20 storeys, plus four low rise blocks of townhouses, with the towers being clad in precast concrete unlike Phase 1. White sought to achieve a “landscape- led development” on this tight, long site hemmed in by a major road, which would “prioritise walking and shared amenities, while reinforcing existing pedestrian routes.” The development is a gateway to the neighbourhood located at a point where routes through and around the old estate converge, and thereby had a key role in directly connecting residents to Barking Town centre.
ADF MARCH 2023
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