Arch Street | Studio Woodroffe Papa

Arch Street is in the heart of the Elephant and Castle’s core regeneration area and on a small 0.2 hectare site squeezed between an existing residential block, the main railway viaduct and the very busy New Kent Road. The constraints of road and rail result in a very constrained site that need to be balanced by the wishes for sunlight, views, privacy and amenity. This complex environment required the architecture to perform a number of urban tasks; ones that questioned the appropriateness of a traditional perimeter block:

-Integrate the existingAlbert Barnes House into the new urban ensemble.

-Create a high degree of enclosure to the street and railway with the brief for fewer ground floor uses.

-Maintain the views to New Kent Road, sunlight penetration into the site and generous amenity space -Reintroduce a street based architecture supporting a permeable network for pedestrians and cyclists

-Establish a new and active frontage along New Kent Road and the newly formed Arch Street

This striking residential scheme challenges the need for a perimeter building to ‘complete’ the existing urban block. Squeezed between the existing residential Albert Barnes House on the East and north boundaries, the railway viaduct and busy road, the ‘open block’ delivers a light and airy interior without sacrificing security and shelter. It maintains views, sunlight and privacy for the existing tenants. It reduces the dependency on retail use whilst maximising outdoor amenity. Different parts of the brief can be resolved in a coherent ‘whole’. Generous covered entrances give each building an individual and protected entry.

The diverse mix of apartments and large family homes are brought together on the southern edge to create a stepped building form. It maximises sunlight into the heart of the scheme and creates a series of landscaped terraces multiplying the rare commodity of the ground for residential or ecological amenity. It is further defined by a strong material presence and articulated form. The road and railway etch themselves across the smooth wooden surface whilst a softer more singular surface of brick reflects light into the central gardens.