PROJECT REPORT: ADAPTIVE REUSE 45


to the often colourful walls, and there is a large irregular-shaped oak design that SPPARC designed for the boardroom at the front of the building. It was CNC cut in three pieces and assembled onsite, like the hexagonal sections of oak ceiling used for the extension.


The extension lightwell’s soft,


bright tones are echoed by a warm material palette designed to create a feeling of “calm and reflection” to support the workplace and social hub. Bespoke pendant lighting hangs in the lightwell between the two levels, creating a high-end, relaxing feel to the space. The ‘library’ room on the ground floor, overlooking the glass roof and roof terrace, contrasts with the rest of the interiors, a cocooning domestic space painted dark blue (walls and ceiling). It offers a private retreat ideal for relaxation and contemplative tasks, with its deep colour offset by the large windows, and direct visual connection to the extension.


Exteriors


Located above the structural timber roof of the new extension is a new external roof garden, accessed from the original stone


ADF NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2024


cantilevered staircase. Precisely formed oak planks create an integrated balustrade and seating area, providing views through the hexagonal glass into the interior below. The honeycomb motif is continued in a perforated corten planter screen around the terrace’s perimeter that houses bee-friendly planting. This encourages pollination from working bees which have been installed in a hive on the roof, completing the theme, which is a strong unifying factor but still a subtly-applied one in this highly successful adaptation.


Conclusion


Commercial priorities led to additions in recent years, which – out of sight of the planners – arguably robbed this lovely Georgian building of its essential nature, at least in part. However, SPPARC took the opportunity to subtly consolidate their reputation in Camden and rescue this building, and turn it around to face inwards to its new social heart, by harnessing a different sort of commercial impetus. Namely, one that puts ethics above capital, and that has been fully embodied in this thoroughly virtuous project which left no stone unturned to please the client. g


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While the lightwell is a focal point, the building enjoys a varied aesthetic throughout with each of the spaces and rooms having a distinct look of their own


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