Tower Court regenerated an old estate to deliver 4 new apartment buildings and a commercial space, set in a mansion block design. Three blocks are 6-storey, with the fourth being part-6-storey, part-12-storey. The scheme delivered 132 residential units which comprised 33 Social Rent, 19 Shared Ownership and 80 Private. What set Tower Court apart was the detailed elevation design and the high quality and imaginative landscaping.

The buildings are arranged around a series of courtyards with swales and several playable bridges over them, each bridge is a unique design. There are many moments of joy found in the landscaping – bridges that replicate nearby real bridges, a bridge which is a boat, a theatre stage, stone boulders polished and indented to catch the rain, many large plant pots that mark out defensible spaces, mosaic signages and mosaic pictures which reflect the names of each block (Kingfisher, Daubenton, Barbel and Peregrine) and a human sundial. There are also more conventional timber play equipment pieces and retained mature trees which give this brand new scheme a sense of fitting in with its surroundings.

Tower Court is located beside Clapton Common in the heart of North London’s Charedi Community and several aspects of the design catered for Orthodox Jewish residents: the lighting, the door access and the lift controls all have a ‘Shabbat’ mode which allow residents to access their homes, even while observing Shabbat, which restricts observers from triggering electronic circuits.

Many of the properties in the scheme also have two kitchen sinks to allow for meat and milk separation. All of this was possible because the project team engaged with the local community throughout the early design stages, gathering information on features they would like to see in the proposed homes.

The form of the buildings themselves – irregular blocks with pre-cast balconies and copings, and robust detailed brickwork which shifts in texture all the way up each building – are also a wonder and surprise as you walk around the site. So much of the design reveals itself gradually and every view is stimulating and qualitatively different. The dense reddish-brown brick was manufactured in the UK by a specialist supplier and high skilled brick laying to achieve the very high-quality finish that is so apparent when walking around the scheme. From the high-quality light fittings to the angled brickwork soffits, Tower Court is an architectural and aesthetic delight.