Highgate Newtown Community Centre

The 100% market sale housing in this project provides over 2000sqm of new youth and community facilities on the site. Each residential unit has its own private amenity space, whether a terrace, balcony or loggia, which exceeds the minimum requirements of the London Plan 2016 Housing SPG. Siting and orientation of private amenity space across the scheme has been considered to activate spaces and encourage passive surveillance of the public realm, while respecting the privacy of neighbouring residential properties. Care has also been taken to reduce impact on existing neighbours by setting back or recessing all private amenity and providing solid balustrade walls. A central courtyard provides an active and high-quality public space at the heart of the site, maintaining an outdoor focal point for community activity and encouraging interaction of passers-by, residents and community centre users. The central courtyard is connected to the north and south by a new public route that was identified through local consultation.

Planning History

The proposals for the site were developed with local planning and conservation officers over a year period. The team was committed to bringing as much of the community along on the journey as possible by designing in an open and responsive manner and feeding back at regular events and in a range of media. This resulted in a high number of design iterations that demonstrated the team had listened to local concerns. The scheme was granted planning consent in June 2017.