Battersea Square Rooftop Oasis

This small, but complex project meant replacing a small balcony and extending over the roof of the building below to create a 100m² terrace with access from two sections of a rearranged apartment floor plan. This outside space is divided into two terraces with zones for living, dining and cooking to enhance the enjoyment of outside, especially during the summer months. Direct access is from two corners of the apartment, where new sliding doors were specified to improve the connection between the internal spaces and outside.

The project was made possible by careful negotiations with the freeholder and the local planning authority. We then produced a design that responded to the clients’ brief while complying with regulations on overdevelopment and overlooking. As such, the terraces are linked by a one-metre wide walkway with a central zone left unused to meet size constraints. Strategic planting in front of glass balustrades provides the necessary privacy. We designed the deck onto the existing roof by specifying large long-span steels supported by load-bearing walls and an infill deck structure.

To fulfil the clients’ desire for an outdoor garden oasis, we worked in partnership with garden designer Richard Miers, and specified planted beds, water features, planting, irrigation system and lighting. Our client is delighted with the outcome and says: ‘Our roof terrace is truly the most Zen place to sit and contemplate the world!’

Photography by Andrew Beasley