Studio Egret West

Resilient Landscapes: Designing for Climate and Community In January, our award winning Mayfield Park faced its first major test—a significant flood—and passed with flying colours, thanks to its innovative floodplain and naturalistic design. But resilience isn’t just about enduring challenges—it’s about recovery, stewardship, and long-term adaptability. As we expand this vision across the River Medlock at Holt Town, concepts like "Sponge Town" are pushing the boundaries of climate-resilient urbanism. Read more from our Director of Landscape; Duncan Paybody about how across the Medlock Valley, Studio Egret West and our partners are proving that caring about the rain, and planning for it, can lead to thriving, climate-resilient communities. https://lnkd.in/emmtv9c5

We are thrilled to share that THREE of our projects have been shortlisted for SEVEN Pineapple Awards, celebrating the very best in placemaking and place-led initiatives. A pineapple a day...?! 🍍 But seriously, we would be happy to win one! Lewisham Shopping Centre for LandsecU+I … is shortlisted for Future Public Realm and Community Engagement categories. Inspired by Lewisham's Anglo-Saxon name "Levesham", meaning "House amongst the Meadow," Studio Egret West envisions a multi-level green landscape atop the shopping centre, transforming it into a vibrant, accessible public space. It addresses the critical need for urban social spaces, with flood-resilient meadows, enhanced biodiversity, and connections to the nearby River Ravensbourne and park network—making it a year-round green destination for all. Earls Court Masterplan for The Earls Court Development Company… is shortlisted for the Future Place category. Working in a 50/50 collaboration between Studio Egret West and Hawkins\Brown we have taken a harmonising approach from the outset, weaving together the four “Place Pillars” of Nature, Innovation, Culture, and Neighbourhood, promising an inspiring new destination designed for all stages of life. The vision sets to bring wonder back to Earls Court with music, arts and entertainment, and homes. A network of Exhibition Gardens will position nature as a golden thread running through the masterplan with a 4.5-acre urban park at the heart of the site. Studio Egret West are collaborating with SLA on the multi layered landscape. Earls Court has also been shortlisted in the Community Engagement and Activation categories. Here, The Earls Court Development Company have ensured local voices guide every step of our journey, such as through the Public Realm Inclusivity Panel, in collaboration with ZCD Architects. The long term framework has been inspired by Earls Court’s innovative meanwhile initiatives, making use of the long-empty site, from Padel Social Club to Come Alive: The Greatest Showman. Greyfriars Green for West Northamptonshire Council… is shortlisted for both Future Place Up to 10ha and Community Engagement categories. Studio Egret West’s transformative vision reimagines a derelict site as a vibrant, campus-like destination that amplifies nature, creativity, play, living, and connectivity. Anchored by a central park with an inviting amphitheatre, the project integrates a mix of uses, diverse housing options, affordable workspaces, creative and cultural venues. Working with Deetu, the project and place principles were shaped through a bespoke digital platform ampnorthampton.com, which saw 2,500 survey responses, 6,000 comments, 12,000 website sessions, and 20,000 page views from nearly 10,000 unique users. We are incredibly proud of these projects and can’t wait to present them to the judges next month! Thank you to The Developer for this recognition, and congratulations to all the other shortlisted projects. 🎉

Studio Egret West are delighted to announce that Manchester City Council’s executive have today approved ambitious plans to transform Holt Town into a new woodland town in the city of Manchester. Situated along the Medlock Valley between the bustling areas of Ancoats and New Islington and the dynamic zones of Sportcity and the Etihad Campus, investment in Holt Town will unlock a missing link. The Holt Town Neighbourhood Development Framework (NDF) has been produced by a multi-disciplinary team led by Studio Egret West (including Deloitte, MVRDV NEXT, Turley, Hatch, Deetu, AKT II, and Hilson Moran). It will help guide investment in the Holt Town area over the next decade. Holt Town represents a major regeneration opportunity to develop a new mixed use neighbourhood, highly sustainable with around 4,500 new homes of different types and tenures – from family housing through to age-friendly and key worker apartments - incorporating high quality green spaces surrounding a 1km “Play Link” that connects St Annes School with Park View Community School in Miles Platting. There will be 15 acres of green space including enhancements to the river and canal settings, a holistic approach to urban drainage and improvements to a new river park – known as a “Confluence Park”. New leisure and cultural uses will include a flexible Cultural Hub and a Lido / natural swimming pond on the site of the historic Holt Town reservoir. In addition to 30,000 sq ft of commercial space, a “Mobility Mill” with centralised parking for the neighbourhood, will be wrapped with affordable workspace and ground floor neighbourhood services. The NDF has been informed by an innovative engagement process that attracted 10,000 website visits and 411 formal responses. Our aspiration is to regrow the community like a woodland. The woodland analogy is captured in the NDF as a layered approach, from roots to ground, from understorey to canopy, and beyond to emergent layers. The NDF takes a carbon neutral approach and a people-first design mindset that prioritises active travel options and public transport over car use. In addition the NDF embeds the opportunity for a digitally enabled neighbourhood that includes the integration of smart technical infrastructure to enable the delivery of local digital solutions and services. Work is already underway on a phasing plan for investment with a view to levering both public sector funding and private investment. To learn more: https://lnkd.in/dpBsuyEH

How can we design buildings to be proud of, with their own identity, all whilst maintaining a cohesive sense of place? And how can we ensure the landscape knitting the buildings together is inclusive and welcoming to all? From the Table Park’s green centerpiece to Lillie Sidings’ industrial-inspired public square, to questions of sitewide design — you’ll find answers to it all in the #EarlsCourtDesignCode. Throughout the next 19 years, this code is The Earls Court Development Company’s comprehensive guide to making the Earls Court masterplan a reality. At the heart of the Earls Court’s design code is a highly unusual collaborative journey. Studio Egret West and Hawkins\Brown developed it alongside the local community and various stakeholders. The result is a collaborative set of principles and an inclusive design approach for this new piece of city. But with a new government in power, what does the future of design codes look like today? As the debate on beauty, design and design codes evolves following recent government announcements, Thomas Clark, Associate Director and Landscape Architect at Studio Egret West will be attending a roundtable of experts in the industry to discuss our experiences, lessons learned and the future of design coding. The event, on Wednesday January 15, will be chaired by Esther Kurland of Urban Design Learning, and bring in contributions from Vicky Payne who helped peer-review the code, and Marko Neskovic from Hawkins\Brown. We look forward to sharing our key learnings from the session. See the Earls Court Design Code here: https://lnkd.in/eAWg5J2K #EarlsCourtDesignCode #designcodes #builtenvironment

2024 wrapped-up! What a year, it has been. Some amazing highlights and acheivments for the studio - buildings completed, awards won, planning granted and places being created. Thank you to all those we have worked with and who have contributed over the year. Wishing everyone a restorative festive period and a happy and healthy New Year!

Studio Egret West attended the launch of “City on the Beach”, in Swansea, when Urban Splash and Swansea Council shared a sketchbook for a vibrant and reimagined Swansea. We are proud to be supporting Urban Splash in their 20 year partnership agreement with City & County of Swansea across seven strategic sites. Each site is delivered in partnership with contributions from a number of different designers including Studio Egret West, Rural Office, Shed KM, ACME, AHMM, FCBS, Loyn+Co and Grant Associates. Together these add up to a wider unifying narrative for Swansea, where quality of life, health and wellbeing, fairness and shared prosperity define what makes the City a great place to live, to work and do business and to visit and enjoy. Studio Egret West is the masterplanning architect and landscape architect for the “City Waterfront”, a world class destination and a new waterfront district for Swansea, where the city meets the beach. Sitting at the end of the newly created Ffordd I’r Môr (“Route to the Sea”) connecting the city centre and Arena directly to the beach, the reinvented and repurposed Civic Centre building will form the centrepiece of a new district buzzing with places to eat, drink and entertain including 150,000 sqft of commercial space, an aquarium, a hotel and up to 600 homes. We are also developing a new strategic spatial framework and development vision for Hafod Copperworks, a beautiful historic site on the banks of the River Tawe close to Swansea.com stadium and Morfa Retail Park. Again a blend of revitalised old buildings and new, including the recently opened Penderyn Distillery and Visitor Centre. Learn more about the initiative here… https://lnkd.in/ehdyg2Ba

It’s #WorldSoilDay! What a perfect moment to announce that Studio Egret West have become “Soil Champions” of the “SOIL: The World at Our Feet” exhibition at Somerset House. The exhibition opens on 23rd January 2025 and is all about unearthing what lies beneath us and connects us all. 🌍🌱 Visit Somerset House and dive into the intricate connections between soil, life, and the planet's future through captivating artworks and be inspired, educated, and empowered. Experience fascinating works by global and local artists including: 🍃 Microbial soundscapes and micro-photography by @wvanegmond_micro & @michaelallenzprime 🍃 France Bourély: Stunning micron photography of soil inhabitants 🍃 Vast digital projections on fungi and mycelium by @marshmallowlaserfeast 🍃 Sound compositions of the "voice of the soil" by @mirandawhall 🍃 Regenerative farming innovations with native plants by @fernandolaposse 🍃 Visualizing agricultural impacts in Egypt: @asuncionmolinosgordo 🍃 Reflections on plantation history and soil memory by @annalee.devere 🍃 A new commission, Above So Below by @semantica_studios & @juancortes79 🍃 Transforming solitary confinement into gardens by jackie sumell @solitarygardens 🍃 A thought-provoking film on entanglements between land and people by @theos_perspective And many more… SOIL is co-curated by @clairecatterall, @thelandgardeners, and @mayrosenthal. Image: Unearthed-Mycelium by Jo Pearl. Copyright Elsa Pearl

Studio Egret West had a good time at the NLA New London Awards 2024. First up, we were delighted to be sat with our client The Earls Court Development Company who were awarded WINNER in the ‘Meanwhile’ Category! Charged with the rare opportunity to create what will become London’s next great estate, meanwhile is proving very worthwhile in delivering the Earls Court Masterplan. Since opening up the site over 500,000 visitors pass through the space, spending time at attractions such as Padel Social Club, Come Alive! The Greatest Showman Spectacular and at the urban beach and movie screenings. A community of creatives, charities and independent businesses in Empress Studios and along Lillie Road are championing local retail and community spirit and bringing a buzz to the area, and The Lost Estate's immersive theatre and food experience is doing the same in West Kensington. The Community Hub has become a much loved space for local people, hosting dozens of classes and workshops each week as well as the 10th Fulham Scouts. All pave the way for the global exemplar of sustainable development that we collectively aspire to at Earls Court. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/e7eChGWz Secondly, our Brent Cross Station was the WINNER of the ‘Transport & Infrastructure’ Category! A transformative project delivered by Barnet Council and Related Argent, and designed by Studio Egret West in collaboration with shedkm, Brent Cross West is the first new mainline station in London in over a decade, reconnecting communities and creating a gateway to the new Brent Cross Town neighbourhood. The design includes a 13m high timber structure and growing frame that weaves the themes of nature and sustainability directly into the arrival spaces of an ambitious new neighbourhood. With its innovative design, sustainable travel focus, and infrastructure that links London to regional and global destinations, this station sets a new standard for modern transport hubs. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/enRzCtjX At Studio Egret West, we believe in the power of transdisciplinary thinking, collaboration and innovation to shape a better future. These awards highlight our dedication to crafting places that are not just functional but inspiring, inclusive, and deeply rooted in their context. Congratulations to all the other winning projects!

Tomorrow is The PLAN Awards in Milan! We are excited to share that our Earls Court Masterplan, a 50/50 collaboration between Studio Egret West and Hawkins\Brown, has been shortlisted in the Urban Planning / Future category. We are very proud of this extraordinary project that is a true reflection of our collaborative and transdisciplinary design approach, blending architecture, landscape and urban design. From the outset, the masterplan proposals have sought to weave together the four “Place Pillars” set by The Earls Court Development Company - Nature, Innovation, Culture, and Neighbourhood - promising an inspiring new destination designed for all stages of life. The PLAN Award is an annual international prize that recognizes excellence in architecture, interior design, and urban planning. Good luck to everyone shortlisted! Fingers Crossed! https://lnkd.in/ek-F8dhS

Studio Egret West is excited to share our proposed transformation of Lewisham's 1970s shopping centre into a vibrant, landscape-led town centre! Working closely with LandsecU+I, we have shaped a framework that not only prioritises sustainability and resilience but also reflects the spirit of the Lewisham community. The new 17-acre district will provide: - 1,700 new homes, 445 co-living residences, and 660 student beds - Eight acres of accessible green spaces, including a central urban meadow  - A 500-person live music venue to support Lewisham’s cultural scene  - Enhanced biodiversity with wildflower planting and over 300 new trees Designed around the values of connection, sustainability, and community, our framework features pedestrian-friendly spaces and a diverse mix of shops, cafes, and open areas to bring new energy to Lewisham. Led by Studio Egret West, as masterplan architect and landscape architect, the planning submission comprises a hybrid application for a 17-acre masterplan and a detailed application for the first two residential buildings, crafted by Mæ Architects Studio MULTI and Archio Ltd. With a strong legacy in the community, having owned Lewisham Shopping Centre for over 20 years, we have engaged with local residents extensively to shape the proposals. We are incredibly proud to work on a project that not only envisions a greener Lewisham but also maintains an inclusive approach to urban regeneration. It’s inspiring to see the result of input from over 3,000 residents and local stakeholders! Shout out to Quod for planning, WSP for engineering, Vectos for transport planning, Bioregional for Sustainability and Joost van Rossenberg and the team at WAX for the epic CGIs!