Brownlow Yard, WC1N

Brownlow Yard, previously Charles Darwin House, is a 1950s office building located in the Bloomsbury Conservation Area of the London Borough of Camden. We were approached to present proposals for the full refurbishment of the building and a potential extension in order to revive it as a contemporary and competitive market offer. The result includes a reconfigured entrance, to provide level access through a previously disused courtyard space, that now provides a fantastic amenity space and impactful entrance to the building. The reception now forms an active frontage along Roger Street and the podium level was reclad in a pattern of red and glazed brick slops that took cue from the existing brick wall to the courtyard. A side extension to the building provided an additional 100m2 of net lettable space and was constructed with a glulam and timber frame, the beams of which are exposed as a feature internally.

On the office floors, the priority was to reconfigure the existing heating and ventilation system away from the perimeter of the space and into a central bulkhead. Meticulous design coordination led to a neat solution that optimises floor to ceiling height, complete with feature wood wool panels running down the centre of each office floor, with the main plant relocated to the roof to make way for the extension. New shower and cycle facilities were added to the building to improve the commuter experience.