Wood Street Mews
Walthamstow, London
2022 - present
Six row houses, a workspace and community cafe on a constrained infill site.
The mews sits behind Wood Street in Walthamstow; a bustling street of independent shops, cafes and pubs punctuated with expressive wall murals of the Wood Street Walls project.
A green oaisis where previuously there was concrete
The green roofs together with the new shared landscape and private back gardens add much needed biodiversity to the site (previously a concrete yard). The planting palette takes it’s cues from the nearby Walthamstow Marshes and gives the site a wild feel.
The project also benefits the neighbours by reducing the noise and disruption of the site whilst creating a new greener outlook.
Working with a complex urban infill site
The site has been owned and run by the same family as a timber yard since the early 1990’s. Functioning as a light industrial use within an otherwise residential area. Although already a good neighbour - the change to a residential use creates a number of new and challenging neighbourly issues; of privacy, overlooking, views and massing.
Low carbon materials
To reduce embodied carbon and operational energy use we designed the buildings in cross laminated timber dressed in bricks made from recycled aggregates. Each home uses air source heat pumps and solar panels for energy production and has green roofs.
Addressing the site’s challenges
Working iteratively we addressed each of these challenges - through a design that combines single and double storey elements for each home. Then shaping the forms and carefully placing windows to respect existing views and ensure privacy for existing and new residents.