Our design for a small new building on Sidcup High Street, in the London Borough of Bexley, represents an excellent example of our ability to maximise awkward infill sites in complex urban areas.

We were approach to investigate this site which had a small portion of space, vacant, at the rear. The front of the site is part of a beautiful Georgian / Edwardian terrace, typical for its time for the UK high street.

This infill site sits in between the formal language of the high street and the more industrial stylings of the buildings to the south. As one expects in urban locations, the site is surrounded by a varied mix of uses which give it a ‘lived in’ / town centre character.

Our design was initially based on the industrial style, as we wanted to create a visual and conceptual distance from the high street architecture. The building is slightly visible from the high street, so we felt it needed to look industrial, so on lookers would associate it with the rear condition instead of it fighting for attention with the front terrace.

We use standing seam metal cladding, with an earthly / worn red colour, to emphasise the industrial language. The plan form is purely reflective and responsive to its surroundings. We needed to give some defensible space to the MOT garage to the west and create a connection to the front.

A mansard roof configuration is used for two reasons – 1. It helps to reduce the form’s impact on surrounding windows 2. It creates an angular form which helps to align it with the industrial units to the south.

Due to the complex form, both in 3-d and on plan, we wanted to use a simple window rhythm so that the design was refined and not too busy. Two windows are placed close to one another, offering balcony space, which is then repeated on each face.

Planning consent is due in the middle of this year – delivering an additional 3 residential units for our client in this tight and awkward infill site.