Ely Court London

ceri.edmunds

Ely Court is a 43-dwelling mixed-tenure regeneration scheme within Phase 1b of London’s South Kilburn Estate Regeneration masterplan, a result of Brent’s rolling programme of invited design competitions for each phase. ABA was invited by Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands to design 43 dwellings on the Ely Court site, while LDS designed 144 units on the site to the north east. The scheme demonstrates the ability of a Local Authority to lead the process of enlightened city building, by commissioning and delivering housing of the highest caliber to integrate previously segregated communities.

The joint masterplan for the Phase 1a and 1b site reinstates the block and street pattern that characterised this archetypal 19th C London ‘suburb’ by reinstating a mews street in the middle of the shared block, Alpha Mews. This mews draws pedestrians and vehicles into what was previously an isolated and under-used ‘green space’ between slab blocks and is made up of shared surfaces, play areas, parking, and connects newly defined garden squares.

Ely Court was conceived as four building types, each of a different scale and organisation tailored to its specific locale: Terrace, Flatiron, Link and Mews.  These have been designed to provide exceptionally high quality, bright and spacious units. Areas generally exceed the LHDG. Floor to ceiling height is exceptionally generous at 2.6m and all windows are full height French doors, with their accompanying sense of light and space. The three buildings share a common brick with particular features such as porches, porticoes and balconies articulated in metal.

ABA Team: Nelson Carvalho, Chris Smaill, Ceri Edmunds, Sergey Kudryashev

Client
London Borough of Brent , Catalyst Housing
Size
6,509 m²
Site Area
4,746 m²
Dwellings
43
Density
91 d/ha
Value
£8.2M
Status
Built
Year
–2015
Awards 6
  • Shortlisted: RICS Award – Regeneration
  • Finalist: EU Mies van der Rohe Award
  • RIBA National Award
  • Shortlisted: NLA Award
  • Mayor of London Award, Housing Design Awards
  • RIBA Regional Award
Executive Architect
Hester Architects
Structures
WSP, Tully De’Ath
Services
Norman Disney & Young
Environment
PRP Architects, Hilsden Homes
Cost
Arcadis UK
Landscape
Churchman Landscape Architects, Adams Haebermehl
Transport
Motion Transport Planning
Photography
Paul Riddle & Nelson Carvalho
Related Projects
Publications10
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