Garden Halls

Solution

In partnership with the University of London, University Partnerships Programme (UPP) appointed tp bennett to redesign existing student accommodation at Cartwright Gardens in Bloomsbury.

It is now one of the largest student residential developments in London, providing 1,200 rooms in townhouses, cluster flats, apartment bedrooms and accessible accommodation. Designed in collaboration with Maccreanor Lavington, the architect for the principal façades, Garden Halls attests to a sophisticated shift in student expectations with screening and music rooms, high-design lounges and a dining hall, as well as landscaped courtyards and gardens with tennis courts.

A key design objective was to repair the fragmented urban block, and respect its period surroundings. The prominent Cartwright Gardens façade echoes the Georgian terraced crescent opposite. Through an understanding of heritage design and materials, the scheme has reinstated the lost character of Leigh Street and Sandwich Street, helping restore the historic nature of the Bloomsbury Conservation Area in tandem with key stakeholders such as the London Borough of Camden and English Heritage. All new façades were designed as brick and cast stone-faced precast concrete panels, which facilitated the project’s precise geometric design.

The Halls were formally opened in January 2017 by HRH Princess Anne, since when they have received a number of industry design awards.