Allford Hall Monaghan Morris announces new Director role 31.03.21

Allford Hall Monaghan Morris has introduced the new role of Director to its architectural operations, sitting between the Executive Board (made up of the four Founding Directors and the Finance Director) and the existing position of Associate Director. As a natural evolution of our existing structure, this new position recognises that the role performed by our talented group of Associate Directors, some of whom have been in that position for up to 15 years, has expanded and evolved beyond the remit when the role was originally established.

All 15 of our existing Associate Directors will be promoted to this new position from 1 April 2021. We are also pleased to confirm the promotion of a further 13 architectural staff to the position of Associate Director and 37 to the position of Associate.

These changes are a response to the practice’s growth over the past decade in the number of architectural staff the practice employs, as well as in the practice’s professional capabilities and those of its people.

Planning approval at Barking Riverside 24.03.21

AHMM’s proposal for Plot 209B at Barking Riverside has been granted planning consent by the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham’s planning committee, receiving unanimous support for approval. The mixed use scheme for Bellway Homes will create 229 new homes, retail and restaurant space, across eight new buildings on a brownfield site at Barking Riverside. Work is expected to start on site in summer 2021.

Planning success for Southwark OSD 23.03.21

Southwark Council has granted planning approval for Southwark OSD, a 17-storey hybrid timber building positioned above Southwark Tube station in south London. The scheme will provide around 265,000 square feet (GIA) of commercial office space, over 2,500 square feet of retail, and over 28,000 square feet of affordable workspace.

Southwark OSD has been designed to achieve both BREEAM Outstanding and WELL Platinum certifications and will retain the much-loved station entrance, ticket hall, and lightwells down to the Jubilee line platforms.

Civic Trust Awards 2021 08.03.21

Three AHMM projects have been recognised in this year’s Civic Trust Awards, which were announced last Friday (5 March). 1 Finsbury Avenue and The Post Building won awards and The Officers’ House at Royal Arsenal was highly commended. The Civic Trust Awards recognise outstanding architecture, planning and design in the built environment – winners also demonstrate strong sustainability credentials, a high level of inclusive design, and a positive civic contribution. Read the full list of winners here.

Planning consent in Camden 26.02.21

Camden Council’s planning committee has voted in favour of a linked application for Belgrove House and Acorn House for client Precis Advisory.

Located on Euston Road opposite King's Cross and St Pancras stations, Belgrove House is a new-build specialised laboratory and office building for the life-sciences sector to be occupied by MSD as a UK Discovery Research Centre and HQ.

The scheme is targeting a BREEAM Outstanding rating. It is designed to be innovative, highly sustainable and an example of carbon emissions reduction in construction, operation, and future refurbishment. Operational energy is reduced through a 'biophilic' double-skin facade allowing natural ventilation and providing a zone for planting.

It is a green building with numerous planted terraces and an extensive landscape plan to bring trees and plants to the surrounding streets. The project offers an excellent opportunity to dramatically enhance the surrounding area, bringing active facades where there are currently blank walls, by removing street clutter and bringing greenery to all four sides of the building.

Acorn House, on nearby Gray’s Inn Road, replaces a 1960s office block with a residential-led mixed-use scheme that includes 33 affordable homes, affordable workspace and retail units.

Work is expected to start on site later this year, subject to approval by the Mayor of London and issue of full planning permission.

Lorimer House completes 18.02.21

AHMM’s Bream Street masterplan has taken a step closer to completion as the first residential building on site has been handed over to the client. Lorimer House is a seven storey building comprising 64 one, two and three bedroom apartments with commercial units at ground floor. It is one of six buildings designed by AHMM on the canalside site close to the Olympic Park in east London. The remaining buildings are due to hand over by the summer with the project completing in June.

A new phase for Kingswood Academy 08.02.21

Planning approval has been granted for a new extension to Kingswood Academy, the RIBA award winning school in Hull originally completed in 2012. This new addition will allow the school to expand from 1350 to 1500 students by creating a new teaching and dining block to the north east side of the school. It arranges 12 new classrooms and two offices over three floors around a central atrium, with the new dining space at ground level.

Big win for Tiny Homes 05.02.21

Tiny Homes, a collection of houses specifically designed for young adults aged 16-19 who are aging out of the foster care system in north Oklahoma City, has been awarded the ULI OK Impact Award for Outstanding Community Building. AHMM has designed three of the homes, each one unique and using materials donated to the project. The winners of the Impact Awards have been announced on social media throughout this week, and you can view the presentation here. Now in their seventh year, the ULI OK Impact awards recognise projects that exemplify best practice in the responsible use of land and their contribution to the built environment and the public realm.

On site at City Road 04.02.21

Work has started on site at 225 City Road, also known as The Arc, a 22 storey mixed use tower in east London. On completion the residential-led scheme will create 100 new homes, including a mix of studios and one, two and three bedroom apartments, above a 150,000 sq ft podium of office and retail space. Shared residential and office amenities include an expansive rooftop terrace on the seventh floor and a communal lounge, gym and fitness suite. The scheme also includes a cinema and restaurant with retail units at street level. The building is due to complete in late 2022.

On site in Birmingham 03.02.21

Work has begun on site at Birmingham Hippodrome. The first phase of the project at the Hippodrome, which is the UK’s busiest single theatre and the home of Birmingham Royal Ballet, involves the reworking of existing levels, creating a new entrance, and improving the public realm to provide safer access and egress for patrons. This initial phase of work will enable the theatre to continue operating during the course of the wider redevelopment, while providing increased social distancing for the future front of house.

AJ Retrofit Awards shortlist 2021 29.01.21

Two AHMM projects have been shortlisted for AJ Retrofit Awards this week. The Officers’ House at Royal Arsenal has been shortlisted in the Houses and Housing category; the project has refurbished and extended two Grade II listed buildings, saving them from the Historic England Buildings at Risk register in the process. Meanwhile, 1 Finsbury Avenue has been shortlisted in the Listed Building category. The redevelopment of the groundbreaking 1980s Arup Associates office building at Broadgate won the New London Architecture Conserving Prize in November, and is the subject of a recent book by Ken Powell.
The winners will be announced at a virtual awards event on Wednesday 24 February – find out more and register here.

On site in the Wheeler District 22.01.21

Work is now well underway at Western Gateway Elementary, AHMM’s first school in the US. The timber framed single storey building in the new Wheeler District of Oklahoma City wraps around an internal courtyard that will create a space for collaborative learning and play, and provide protection from the strong Oklahoma wind and summer sun. Western Gateway Elementary joins AHMM’s mixed use Wheeler Block 13, which recently topped out, in a new neighbourhood replacing the disused Oklahoma City airfield.

Civic Trust Awards 06.01.21

The Post Building, 1 Finsbury Avenue and Royal Arsenal have been announced as three of the 40 recipients of 2021 Civic Trust National Awards. Founded in 1959, the awards recognise projects whose architecture and environmental design have made a positive contribution to the local communities they serve, improving the built environment through design, sustainability, inclusiveness and accessibility. The awards will be presented in March – find out more here.