Located within the Ashburnham Triangle Conservation Area in Greenwich, London, the project will retain the Grade II Listed Magistrates’ Court and the two redundant school buildings, as well as reintroducing public access to the Court building and creating new green space and local amenities.

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The design approach restores the Grade II listed former Greenwich Magistrates Court, and celebrates this by establishing a series of public spaces and courtyards, around which contemporary buildings articulate the transition between old and new through glazed links and skylights. Local residents, visitors and hotel guests will be encouraged into the central landscaped spaces. New buildings respect the historic characteristics of the neighbourhood with their materials and proportions, becoming more playful at the centre of the site where glazed and perforated metal facades characterise the courtyard elevations. Patterns and details across the development draw reference from historic elements found within the original Magistrates building. The result is a publicly accessible development which anchors itself into the surrounding neighbourhood, whilst creating a destination with a unique character.

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The scheme is sympathetic to its physical and historical context, replacing a number of later extensions and alterations with four linear rows of quality contemporary buildings which will use a discreet, pared back palette of colours and materials. The buildings’ heights, varying from three to seven storeys, are staggered sensitively across the rear of the site, opening up the area and allowing the natural light to neighbouring properties.

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The ground floor of the former Magistrates’ Court and one of the school buildings will contain front of house hotel services such as the bar, restaurant and café, giving the buildings a new life and creating new amenities for both hotel guests and local residents.

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The new proposals will also include a range of public, semi-public and private green spaces, including a new public square, built around an existing mature tree, and animated by a restaurant or café. Inside, a generous lobby with a large skylight will link to another indoor space adjacent to the Magistrates’ Court. At first-floor podium level, soft landscaped open spaces provide a break between the existing housing and new hotel elements, whilst at second-floor level, there will be a semi-public hard landscaped roof terrace with generous planting. Further facilities include a gym, pool, conference centres and generous parking spaces.