Development Meets Design

Sir Terry Farrell, an architectural titan with an international reputation, is best know for large landmark projects: the brooding MI6 HQ in London, the monumental Inchon airport in Seoul, the angular elegance of the marine research centre in Hull.

So there were doubtless a few raised eyebrows when the great man teamed up with mass housebuilder Berkeley Homes to design three modernist houses on a sensitive site in the upmarket village of Petersham, Surrey.

Farrell's breathtaking courtyard development is as sophisticated and expensive (£4m per property) as new homes get. And you can certainly see why Berkeley Homes were delighted to have such an eminent name adorning their marketing material.

But what was in it for Farrell? And why, for that matter, is the minimalist master John Pawson working with the developer Octagon? Why is Norman Foster designing suburban houses for Urban Splash? And why is the acclaimed German company Huf Haus in partnership with Wates Homes?

What we're witnessing here, says Alex Ely of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, is the beginnings of a revolution in British housebuilding, a revolution driven by innovative new methods of construction, by government planning regulations, and by consumer demand for something more interesting than the bog-standard box.

On the planning front, the government is insisting that developers build on brownfield sites, create high-density mixed-use communities, and take due notice of the surrounding context when they draw up their designs.

"Developers," says Ely, "are recognising the value good architecture can add to their work.

"New planning regulations (PPG3) have brought about a sea-change in the way housebuilders procure design - they can no longer get away with technicians throwing down standard schemes."

There are still numerous developers out there who haven't quite absorbed the implications of this transformation, but the most forward-looking recognise that the business as usual is no longer an option.

Fulfilling the idealistic vision outlined in of PPG3, however, is no easy task. Creativity and invention are called for; which is why top architects are being enlisted to provide the imaginative spark the developers so desperately need.

Cynics, of course, might feel justified at this point in noting that Farrell's Three Houses scheme is hardly the sort of affordable development John Prescott seems so eager to see built across the South East.

And in this they'd be right. Berkeley Homes are happy to admit that the collaboration resulted in a clever courtyard development that managed to satisfy the planning authorities while fitting "three very large (600m²) houses on relatively modest-sized plots."

Form, in this case, is as bound up with finance as it is with function. But there was also a more idealistic dimension to Three Houses. Farrell has long been fascinated with the concept of courtyard housing and believes that this is a template that could easily be adapted for affordable housing.

The virtue of the courtyard, he says, is its combination of public and private spaces: in the Three Houses development none of the houses are overlooked and all have private enclosed gardens that merge seamlessly with the internal spaces.

Berkeley Homes, mindful of all those new houses that need building, were keen to explore the implications of the courtyard idea with Farrell and say they "gave the architects licence to develop ideas based on increasing density - a model which may be used to respond to the housing crisis in our cities."

In this they have a good track record: their striking Brewery Square development in Clerkenwell, designed by Hamilton Associates, has been universally acclaimed as an inspiring combination of fine design and sensitive urban planning; and their genuinely innovative ONE SE8 development (through their subsidiary St James Homes) with RMA Architects is one of the best new urban quarters in the capital.

One SE8, St James & RMA Architects
Other developers have also been busy forging imaginative alliances: in Dulwich Village, Wates Homes have embarked on a daring collaboration with the acclaimed Germany company Huf Haus.

In Altrincham, the award-wining Urban Splash have joined forces with Norman Foster to develop the Budenberg Haus Projekte - 290 apartments next to the Bridgewater Canal.

In Essex Copthorn Homes and architects Proctor Matthews have produced the outstanding Abode development in Harlow, and the pair have also collaborated on the award-winning Chronos Development on the Mile End Road.

And in Cambridge, Countryside Properties have employed several architects, including the award-winning Alison Brooks, to complete a scheme of over 350 new homes in the heart of the city.

Such examples suggest that there are reason to be optimistic about the future of British housing. And if architects do, finally, have a major say in how our homes are built, that could prove something of a redemptive process for the profession.

"Historically," says Alex Ely, "there has been a mistrust of architects. Many of the post-war modernist developments were architect-led, and some of the quickly-built and poorly-maintained schemes have, unfairly I think, been blamed on the profession.

"People, however, are overcoming that mistrust and there's now a much greater appreciation of architecture and design. The collaboration between architects and housebuilder is part of that. It's still not nearly as widespread as it might be. But it's a very encouraging trend."

Building For Life
Interesting showcase of innovative new developments - backed by CABE, the Civic Trust and the Housebuilders' Federation.

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Excellent online resource of images and information showcasing top architects and helping you find the right one for your project or development.

Michael O'Flynn

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