POWYS LANE
Redevelopment of a back-land brownfield site in Enfield of 9 family houses. The run of terraces is split in the centre of the site, providing a break in massing for the wider townscape playspace for the children.
Redevelopment of a back-land brownfield site in Enfield of 9 family houses. Designing homes on such a constrained site leads to unique and interesting design features that are heavily context driven. The run of terraces is split in the centre of the site, providing a break in massing for the wider townscape playspace for the children, bikes/bins for the residents and a turning head for vehicles.
The intention is that the building will sensitively slot into the back-land site, occupying a similar footprint to the existing garages. Alongside a high-quality and landscaped shared surface offered within this mews scaled space, the public realm will thread together and unify the development whilst offering a secluded amenity space minutes from the arterial route of the North Circular.
The base of the scheme comprises large cut stone blocks with deep reveal corner windows etched out to minimise overlooking. To the upper levels, longitudinal cut bricks with recessed mortar joints create a contrast in texture that offers a contemporary response to the banding of the suburban vernacular.
There is significant opportunity to capitalise on a site which sits underutilised in an area with the demand for more housing. The unique secluded nature of the site relative to its close proximity to a wider transport network offers a unique opportunity to create a new thriving residential community that discreetly sits within the existing neighbourhood.
The roof pitches on the development have been angled slightly to create a connection between the pitched inter-war suburban housing and the more recent Ruby Mews larger scale housing development; there appeared to be an opportunity to study the roof pitches and create a language that referenced both of the adjacent typologies in a contemporary yet sympathetic manner.
On a narrow and constrained site such as this, mitigating issues around overlooking is crucial. In order to orientate views to the north with the larger expanse of relief between urban blocks in this orientation, windows to the north in constrained areas have angled windows. To the south, obscure windows are provided and articulation of the façade has been layered into the design to ensure the outlook from the southern facing rear gardens feels appropriate for its setting.
(01) TYPICAL UNIT
(02) TYPICAL AMENITY
(03) PLAYSPACE
(04) PUBLIC AMENITY
When taking a fresh view of the site it became clear the greatest opportunity was to embrace the site’s slender proportions and look to slot in a series of residential mews units similar to those recently approved elsewhere in the vicinity. A key move has been to split the run of terrace units into two blocks, breaking down the scale of the development. The space created by the break in between the two mews runs has multiple functions, providing space for communal amenity, communal bin store, visitor cycle parking and a vehicular turning circle which a fire tender vehicle could utilise.
When taking a fresh view of the site it became clear the greatest opportunity was to embrace the site’s slender proportions and look to slot in a series of residential mews units similar to those recently approved elsewhere in the vicinity. A key move has been to split the run of terrace units into two blocks, breaking down the scale of the development. The space created by the break in between the two mews runs has multiple functions, providing space for communal amenity, communal bin store, visitor cycle parking and a vehicular turning circle which a fire tender vehicle could utilise.
Amenity – The inclusion of car ports was not a policy requirement but proves a very useful amenity for a family home to have. By including these, the ground floor then became very tight resulting in the living space to be located on the second floor with direct access to the private terrace of each unit.
Uniformity – Repeating units gave the scheme a consistency that was then subtly broken with small and larger moves such as the mansard roof section. This also gave the scheme a mews style which is very appropriate for the site’s location.
Overlooking Mitigation – Due to the close proximity of neighbouring buildings, some windows had to be obscured. We achieved this by angling them out and chamfering the reveals to focus views across to park.
