Inglis Road

The site is situated at a culs-de-sac on the cusp of two conservation areas, Ealing Common and Creffield. To the west is the major artery of the Hanger Lane lined with grand impressive residences, while to the east are the quieter, more modest detached houses of Inglis Road. The proposal mediates between these two opposing scales and rhythms by restoring the site’s historic frontage onto Hanger Lane, while respecting the scale and proportions of Inglis Road.

Three residential blocks of three stories each are arranged around a landscaped central courtyard that forms the heart of the development and increases daylight, greenery and communal garden space to the apartments. The blocks contain 21 apartments, in a mix of one, two and three bedrooms units to satisfy the London Plan requirements of maximising the potential of land to increase London’s housing stock and provide a variety of accommodation types for its diverse demographic. Each apartment is designed to maximize open plan living, with ground floor terraces and recessed upper balconies providing private amenity space. A large, landscaped communal garden to the rear provides quiet spaces for contemplation as well as social spaces for entertainment and leisure such as an outdoor dining area and children’s play facilities.

To allow for suitable density while creating a coherent scale of development with the adjacent two storey buildings, the building mass is carefully sculpted to reduce its bulk. An oblique folded roofscape corresponds to the neighbouring rhythm of pitched gables, concealing the third floor. The elevations are periodically recessed allowing the protruding brickwork sections to correspond in widths to the bay windows dominating the local architecture. These recesses form sheltered entrances to the blocks and are lined in a contrasting bronze coloured material, in homage to the plethora of contrasting light and dark materials used within the conservation areas. The proposal ends the streetscape appropriately whilst creating a dynamic folded volume that responds to shifting daylight, offering a unique characteristic to the neighbourhood.