Bell Phillips Designs Albion Street Housing with Distinctive Brick Facades
Bell Phillips Architects has unveiled a significant housing complex on Albion Street in East London, a project that seamlessly merges residential needs with civic design. This new development, characterized by its distinctive scalloped white brick exterior, introduces 26 homes for social and shared ownership, alongside new retail establishments and a public plaza. The design reflects a sensitive approach to its surroundings, drawing inspiration from the architectural nuances of two neighboring Grade-II listed churches, thereby creating a harmonious blend of historical context and contemporary urban living.
Situated in Rotherhithe, on the former site of the Albion Street Civic Centre, the 3,027-square-meter development offers a variety of one, two, and three-bedroom apartments. The design strategy adopted by Bell Phillips aimed to establish a "common language" that bridges the distinct aesthetics of the 1920s St Olav's Norwegian Church and the 1950s Finnish Church in London. This thoughtful integration of styles is evident in the two main blocks of the complex, each responding to a specific historical neighbor.
The larger, five-story block, constructed with red brick, mirrors the architectural style of the older St Olav's Norwegian Church. It is elevated on a substantial plinth that houses retail spaces, intentionally complementing the existing commercial establishments across the street. In contrast, the smaller, southeastern block pays homage to the modernist sensibilities of the Finnish Church, showcasing a unique scalloped white brick facade that overlooks the newly developed public square.
Tim Bell, co-founder of Bell Phillips, elaborated on the material choices, stating that the red brick plinth harmonizes with the horizontal banding of the traditional Norwegian Church, while the white brickwork ties in with the tone of the Finnish Church. He emphasized that the material palette was selected to achieve a strong civic presence, enabling the creation of a distinctive facade that, while new and intriguing, sits comfortably alongside its characterful neighbors. The apartments are predominantly dual-aspect, benefiting from the building's shallow depth. Living areas are strategically positioned to face the south, away from the bustling Rotherhithe Tunnel Approach, and feature white-steel balconies atop the red-brick block's plinth.
At the southeastern end, the deep-set balconies within the scalloped white-brick facade offer residents privacy from the public square below. This public space itself has been revitalized, with improvements inspired by the area's popular Scandinavian markets. Furthermore, a communal roof terrace has been created on the fourth floor, offering shared outdoor space for residents where the building steps back.
Albion Street represents the initial phase of a larger two-phase project undertaken by Bell Phillips for Southwark Council. The subsequent phase will involve the construction of a second block of 50 homes on the adjacent Renforth Street. This project follows Bell Phillips' recent completion of another housing block in Marylebone, which also featured a similar scalloped pale brick facade, and their contribution of mirrored pavilions to a science campus in Oxfordshire. The architectural photography for the Albion Street project was expertly captured by Kilian O'Sullivan.