Forster House - Design Proposals
Key
The design proposals show a new residential
building adjacent to the existing Forster
House buildings along Whitefoot Lane in
the London Borough of Lewisham. The new
building will provide 23 new affordable rent
units for Phoenix Community Housing in a mix
of one and two bedroom apartments. All of
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pedestrian route
vehicle route
pedestrian node
the dwellings are designed to meet Lifetime
Homes standards and there are also two
new fully wheelchair accessible dwellings. As
well as a new building there are proposals
to upgrade the amenity spaces for the entire
Forster House site, providing enhancements
for existing residents.
views from building
building line steps down
site boundary
play space
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Masterplan – Whitefoot Lane
• The design maintains the existing vehicle
access point to the site and extends the
pedestrian footpaths to integrate with the
site.
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The new building steps down from the
taller existing Forster House buildings to
the smaller scale of the adjacent houses.
Red brickwork with large framed openings
as well as cantilevering walkways help to
articulate the building and provide views
over the Forster Memorial Park.
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New trees along Whitefoot Lane give a
green edge to the street, continuing the
existing row of trees.
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Overlooking of adjacent gardens is
minimised.
Masterplan – Rear of Site
• The new building is planned as an ‘L’
shape. This allows the continuation of the
street frontage to Whitefoot Lane and also
encloses the site to provide protection to
the amenity spaces to the rear.
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A new pedestrian path, planting and play
spaces help to reengage the spaces to the
rear, giving a structure to the landscape.
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Existing parking adjacent to the existing
buildings is maintained.
The planning of new dwellings takes
advantage of solar orientation to provide
light filled apartments for new residents.
Levitt Bernstein
Forster House - Proposed Elevations
Whitefoot Lane Elevation
The new building sits between the existing
six storey Forster House and adjacent two
storey houses. One of the principle aims of
the elevation design is to step down the scale
between these two existing contexts. The
new building takes cues from the surrounding
buildings, carrying on the use of red brick.
The tallest element of the building back from
the main façade line and is clad in a light
material. Then, the front elevation is split into
three masses in a stronger red brick that
steps down towards the lower context. Where
the façade is broken up, glass elements sit
vertically stacked within the gaps. Between
the red brick frames are vertically patterned
materials, either glass or fibre cement panels.
Rear Elevation
The rear of the building is more simple and
calmer than the front façade. The main
material on the inside of the ‘L’ is a lighter
brick. This continues the use of light brick to
the rear of the existing Forster House. Another
advantage of using a light material is that it
reflects the sunlight making the rear amenity
space feel like a sun-trap. Stacked recessed
balconies with simple metal railings give a
clear, consistent articulation to the building and
are robust. Trees help to shield the building
from views to the houses behind the site.
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Strong red brick
forms with large
framed openings
defining individual
dwellings.
Light coloured fibre
cement panels to
rear block, visually
offsets the red brick.
Vertical ribbed fibre
cement panels give
increased visual
interest to the
façade.
PPC aluminium
windows – light grey
window frames.
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Simple robust metal
railings
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Recessed brick panels
help to articulate the
building and group
windows of individual
dwellings.
Levitt Bernstein
Forster House - 3D Views
View looking east along Whitefoot Lane
View looking west along Whitefoot Lane
View looking east at the rear of the site
Levitt Bernstein
Forster House - Landscape Proposals
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Shared surface
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Raised planters with timber seats
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Feature tree
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Climbers
Lawn and existing trees
Whitefoot Lane
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Forster House
New Building
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Forster House
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Fragrant planting
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Timber play elements
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Spring bulbs
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Integrated timber benches
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Timber walkway
Levitt Bernstein