Keeling House
Encyclopedia
Keeling House is a 16-storey block of flats located on Claredale Street in Bethnal Green
, London
, England. It was designed by Denys Lasdun
and completed in 1957 as a cluster of 4 blocks of maisonettes arranged around a central service tower. A radical renovation in 2001 added a penthouse
storey and concierge
service.
.
Lasdun was concerned that earlier modernist designs did not take sufficient account of what made neighbourhoods work. He sought to give residents a sense of place and belonging, replicating the good relations between neighbours which he noticed in traditional Victorian terraced streets. Each dwelling was a maisonette rather than a flat, similar inside to an East End
house. Unlike a flat slab or tower block, he designed Keeling House with four wings that each look onto another, encouraging contact between neighbours. Between the central lift tower and the front doors of the apartments, tenants had to pass communal 'drying areas' for laundry and storage, where he hoped that social interchange would be as natural as in the streets below. However, he also designed the homes for privacy; the balconies
face outward and do not look onto one another.
Keeling House was initially popular with residents. However, it later suffered from the social problems that affected many Council estates in the 1970s and 1980s. Tower Hamlets Council closed the block in 1992, due to fears over the original construction quality.
In 1993, the building was designated a Grade II* listed building; it was the first example of post-war
council housing to receive this designation. Tower Hamlets could not afford to renovate it and in 1999 sold it to a private developer. It was converted into luxury apartment
s between 1999 and 2001. Key features of the renovation include a striking glass foyer with external water feature designed by local architects Munkenbeck and Marshall, and eight penthouses on what had previously been the service roof of a 15-storey building. Lasdun, who died in 2001, visited the project and supported the plans including the addition of penthouse flats, but regretted that the building would no longer house the poor. The redevelopment won an RIBA
Award in 2002 and a Civic Trust
commendation.
Bradley House, however, was demolished in 2005. Its site was redeveloped by Tower Hamlets Community Homes, a housing association
, and Hill Partnerships as part of a mixed-tenure development opened in 2009.
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England. It was designed by Denys Lasdun
Denys Lasdun
Sir Denys Lasdun CH was an eminent English architect. Probably his best known work is the Royal National Theatre, on London's South Bank of the Thames, which is a Grade II* listed building and one of the most notable examples of Brutalist design in the United Kingdom.Lasdun studied at the...
and completed in 1957 as a cluster of 4 blocks of maisonettes arranged around a central service tower. A radical renovation in 2001 added a penthouse
Penthouse apartment
A penthouse apartment or penthouse is an apartment that is on one of the highest floors of an apartment building. Penthouses are typically differentiated from other apartments by luxury features.-History:...
storey and concierge
Concierge
A concierge is an employee who either works in shifts within, or lives on the premises of an apartment building or a hotel and serves guests with duties similar to those of a butler. The position can also be maintained by a security officer over the 'graveyard' shift. A similar position, known as...
service.
History
Keeling House was originally part of a larger housing scheme that also contained a low-rise council block called Bradley House. The building was erected following the completion of Lasdun's two smaller buildings on Usk Street, Bethnal Green, with which it shares its 'cluster' design. These were all council homesCouncil house
A council house, otherwise known as a local authority house, is a form of public or social housing. The term is used primarily in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Council houses were built and operated by local councils to supply uncrowded, well-built homes on secure tenancies at...
.
Lasdun was concerned that earlier modernist designs did not take sufficient account of what made neighbourhoods work. He sought to give residents a sense of place and belonging, replicating the good relations between neighbours which he noticed in traditional Victorian terraced streets. Each dwelling was a maisonette rather than a flat, similar inside to an East End
East End of London
The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...
house. Unlike a flat slab or tower block, he designed Keeling House with four wings that each look onto another, encouraging contact between neighbours. Between the central lift tower and the front doors of the apartments, tenants had to pass communal 'drying areas' for laundry and storage, where he hoped that social interchange would be as natural as in the streets below. However, he also designed the homes for privacy; the balconies
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
face outward and do not look onto one another.
Keeling House was initially popular with residents. However, it later suffered from the social problems that affected many Council estates in the 1970s and 1980s. Tower Hamlets Council closed the block in 1992, due to fears over the original construction quality.
In 1993, the building was designated a Grade II* listed building; it was the first example of post-war
Post-war
A post-war period or postwar period is the interval immediately following the ending of a war and enduring as long as war does not resume. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum when a war between the same parties resumes at a later date...
council housing to receive this designation. Tower Hamlets could not afford to renovate it and in 1999 sold it to a private developer. It was converted into luxury apartment
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
s between 1999 and 2001. Key features of the renovation include a striking glass foyer with external water feature designed by local architects Munkenbeck and Marshall, and eight penthouses on what had previously been the service roof of a 15-storey building. Lasdun, who died in 2001, visited the project and supported the plans including the addition of penthouse flats, but regretted that the building would no longer house the poor. The redevelopment won an RIBA
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...
Award in 2002 and a Civic Trust
Civic Trust
The Civic Trust of England was a charitable organisation founded in 1957. It ceased operations in 2009 and went into administration due to lack of funds/...
commendation.
Bradley House, however, was demolished in 2005. Its site was redeveloped by Tower Hamlets Community Homes, a housing association
Housing association
Housing associations in the United Kingdom are independent not-for-profit bodies that provide low-cost "social housing" for people in housing need. Any trading surplus is used to maintain existing homes and to help finance new ones...
, and Hill Partnerships as part of a mixed-tenure development opened in 2009.
External links
- Keeling House - Photographs and information about Keeling House.
- RIBA Keeling House Archive - Keeling House gallery at the Royal Institute of British Architects.