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South Gardens wins housing awards for 'sense of community' and 'beautiful design'.

Find out more about South Gardens and Lendlease Elephant and Castle. South Gardens wins housing design awards.

Awards
  • 2 Dec 2019
SOUTH GARDENS HAS BEEN RECOGNISED WITH MULTIPLE HONOURS, INCLUDING WINNING A RECENT ACCOLADE AT THE 2018 HOUSING DESIGN AWARDS.

The new community-orientated homes, from Lendlease UK, took the prize for their ‘accessible, useful and beautiful’ outdoor areas, ‘sense of community’, and strong use of plants from ‘large trees… to flowering borders’.

The judges were impressed with the ‘shared ground-level courtyards and upper-floor roof terraces’, adding that ‘residents can both feel a sense of ownership of their environment and engender a sense of community.’

In a successful few weeks for South Gardens, the development was also commended for Sustainability in the New London Architecture Awards, and went at a step further at the Construction News Awards by being crowned ‘Sustainable Project of the Year‘. This follows winning the Royal Institute of British Architecture London Award 2018 and being named Supreme Winner at the Brick Awards 2017.

 

THIS IS WHAT REGENERATION SHOULD BE ABOUT,” SAYS LEADER OF SOUTHWARK COUNCIL, PETER JOHN OBE, ‘PEOPLE OF ALL BACKGROUNDS AND ALL INCOMES, LIVING SIDE BY SIDE IN THE HIGHEST QUALITY HOUSING.’

 

WHAT RESIDENTS ARE SAYING ABOUT SOUTH GARDENS:

‘WHAT’S LOVELY, I THINK, ABOUT THIS DEVELOPMENT IS THAT IT’S SUCH A MIX OF PEOPLE. HAVING AREAS WHERE YOU CAN HAVE A PROPER COMMUNITY, GENERATE SUPPORT NETWORKS, HAVE NICE OUTDOOR SPACES WHERE YOU CAN EXERCISE CAN ONLY REALLY BENEFIT THE WELLBEING OF A POPULATION’ – ISABEL


‘IT ENCOURAGES US TO GET INVOLVED WITH THE OTHER PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN THE OTHER BLOCKS AND WE GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER’ – ROSIE


Designed by Maccreanor Lavington Architects, South Gardens features 360 homes, ranging from three-storey townhouses to a 16-storey tower.

Its ‘clever mix of types of properties’ and ‘charming’ landscaping impressed the RIBA judges, who said there was a ‘strong place-making philosophy’ to the design, which made the development feel ‘like a small village’.

Taking inspiration from traditional London streetscapes, 22 townhouses at South Gardens have bay windows, Juliet balconies and private terraces, which lead out to three beautifully landscaped courtyards, with play areas for children.

Sustainability is also important, and all the homes at South Gardens are designed to be at least 35 per cent more energy efficient than current regulations require, while 15 of the new homes have been built to the ultra efficient ‘passivhaus standard’. There is also a strong focus on urban nature, with the retention of mature trees from the previous estate plus the planting of many new semi-mature trees.

Green transport is also encouraged, with charging ports for electric vehicles, and new pedestrian walkways and cycle routes. Residents also have access to dedicated bike maintenance and cleaning areas.

South Gardens is healthy living in the centre of London, offering families the best of all worlds.