Mount Pleasant Studios

Peter Barber Architects, Camden, London, 2014

 

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Morley von Sternberg     Download Original

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  • Before & after site plans    
  • Lower ground floor plan    
  • Upper ground floor plan    
  • First floor plan    
  • Second floor plan    
  • Roof plan    
  • Section    

Sheltered housing project for street homeless people set within a secluded courtyard close to Grays Inn Road and High Holborn

The existing brick buildings have been rationalised internally, and the tiny rooms turned into shared kitchen spaces that serve clusters of simple bedrooms, each with an en suite bathroom.

Arranged around the generous courtyard, the section through the accommodation blocks is small, meaning most of the rooms are dual-aspect, with views internally and externally.  There are more than 50 rooms in the hostel: 14 are set aside for the eight-week assessment period for new residents; there are 34 rooms for residents who will stay for 12-18 months and then a few more for emergency accommodation.

The removal of a block that divided and confused the site has created a calm sun trap a storey below street level. All the accommodation and staff areas look out onto this space, the laundry and training kitchens spilling out into the square. From this central space all of the accommodation blocks – there are four in total – can be accessed.

Data

  • Begun: Nov 2012
  • Completed: Jul 2014
  • Floor area: 1,350m2
  • Sector: Residential
  • Total cost: £4.5M
  • Procurement: Design and Build
  • Address: Mount Pleasant, Holbourn, Camden, London, WC1, United Kingdom

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