Gort Scott Architects creates a hub for Walthamstow’s burgeoning creative community
![Inside Today Bread showing tables, chairs & food counter](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PHEX5T3UVSmBF6V4BpfKdk-415-80.jpg)
The east London borough of Waltham Forest has been undergoing a slow but steady makeover in recent years. Thanks to an influx of young buyers priced out of central London, the end-of-the-line neighbourhood has transformed itself into one of the capital's most desirable areas with a blossoming creative community to match.
As a reflection of this, last year the London Borough of Waltham Forest commissioned the refurbishment of the Central Parade with funding help from the GLA. Opened this summer, the project has seen the former 1960s office building reborn as a new cultural and creative enterprise hub designed by young architectural practice Gort Scott. Open for two years while the long-term future of the site is decided upon, the Central Parade is now home to 650 sq m of retail and co-working spaces with meeting rooms, flexible event and exhibition space, small ‘maker’ shops available for those who wish to pilot new products or services, and studio units for up to 50 independent creative businesses.
Already home to an independent start-up bakery and café run by Hackney artisan sourdough bread company Today Bread, the Central Parade is operated by Meanwhile Space, a social enterprise that specialises in delivering temporary and affordable workspaces that benefit local communities.
‘We stripped back the linings of the outdated council one-stop shop; the lowered ceilings, carpets, partitioned desks etc, to create a generous, robust hall-like space,’ says Jay Gort, director of Gort Scott, who also developed a range of bespoke furniture for the project. ‘Simultaneously, we ensured that the façades of this landmark building were sensitively updated to re-establish the building's positive contribution to the streetscape. We worked closely with graphic designers Polimekanos to develop a graphic identity for the project which was inspired by the original decorative façade tiles.’
From the outside, subtle updates indicate the building’s change in use; the underside of the wave canopy has been painted a vibrant yellow, two new street entrances have been introduced, new signage has been added and bicycle parking has been instated.
While Gort Scott has previously completed a number of projects in Waltham Forest – two separate urban design frameworks for Blackhorse Lane and the town centre, the regeneration of Wood Street Indoor Market and a strategy for public realm interventions in the Blackhorse Lane area – the borough has a number of new projects in the works as part of its continued regeneration. These include a new Creative Industries Zone and a Housing Zone in Blackhorse Lane, and the redevelopment of St James Street.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Gort Scott website
Photography: Dirk Lindner
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
-
Feel at home at Auberge, Château La Coste's new inn for culture lovers
Auberge La Coste sits at the heart of the art-filled estate, minutes away from the joyful town of Aix-en-Provence
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
This Nova Lima apartment is a Brazilian family oasis with striking Minas Gerais views
A Nova Lima apartment designed by Jacobsen Arquitetura celebrates its long, natural Minas Gerais vistas
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Commune’s sustainable personal care products look ‘quite unlike anything else’
Commune’s Somerset-made products stand out in the sustainable skincare crowd. Madeleine Rothery speaks with the brand’s co-founders Kate Neal and Rémi Paringaux
By Madeleine Rothery Published
-
Tour the Natural History Museum’s new gardens, a Jurassic lark in London
The Natural History Museum in London has unveiled two new gardens, with resident dinosaurs, after a transformation led by architects Feilden Fowles
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Drama Republic moves into a colourful, handcrafted workspace in London
For the new creative HQ of production company Drama Republic, Emil Eve Architects remodels a warehouse into office space in London’s Holborn
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Hideaway House in London features timber panelling inspired by the New York hospitality scene
The elegantly refurbished Hideaway House by Studio McW in London features timber panelling inspired by Philip Johnson’s The Four Seasons Restaurant
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
An Uxbridge annexe by Bureau de Change is a design for effortless intergenerational living
Uxbridge Bower, a residential annexe in west London, is a contemporary addition offering both privacy and connection for the needs of a family
By Tianna Williams Published
-
‘Modern Buildings’ tours south-east London through a guide to post-war Blackheath and Greenwich
‘Modern Buildings: Blackheath and Greenwich’ is a detailed survey of a London borough’s rich trove of new modernist architecture
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Triangle House invites you to its inner world of colourful surprises
Triangle House by Artefact is a private home in Epsom, outside London, combining Caribbean style, colour and functionality
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tour the refreshed Saint Andrew Holborn: an icon reveals its crisp new interior in London
DaeWha Kang reimagines Saint Andrew Holborn church through a sensitive architectural solution that blends tradition and modernity in London
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A Suffolk house by Studio Bark pairs a fresh visual language with low-energy design
Suffolk house Water Farm is off-the-grid but defiantly on the map, a bold new object in the landscape with a strong visual impact and minimal carbon footprint
By Jonathan Bell Published