Chobham Manor, Stratford

RIBA East London Regional Awards winner

Chobham Manor, Stratford
PRP, Make, muf architecture/art for LLDC (Taylor Wimpey and L&Q)
Contract value: Confidential
GIA: 115,075m²

Part of the London Legacy Development Corporation’s (LLDC) vision to transform part of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford into a series of thriving new neighbourhoods, the Chobham Manor development comprises over 880 homes, a cafe, nursery, 1,500m² of open space, and an extensive public realm. It is the first of five new neighbourhoods that will deliver 5,500 new homes and community facilities.

Taking cues from the street pattern of the former Athletes’ Village, the Chobham Manor homes are arranged in a recognisable grid of avenues and mews streets adjacent to a series of interconnected village ‘greens’. These form a linear garden spine permeating the development that directly links to the Olympic Park a short walk away.

Post-Olympic legacy strategies have often failed to deliver tangible results, so it is to the LLDC’s credit that a clear vision for the regeneration of the area was established from the outset. Development strategies for the masterplan were underpinned by a design code and parameter plans that formed part of the planning consent in 2012. Extensive engagement was embraced to hone the approach, involving the LLDC’s design panel and other key stakeholders.

With the Athletes’ Village remaining as apartments post-games, LLDC took the decision to create a family-orientated neighbourhood designed to be child-friendly, sustainable, and inclusive. As a result, 75% of the Chobham Manor dwellings are larger homes (three bedrooms or more) and complement surrounding developments to create a balanced community. As part of this approach, 35% of the 880 homes are affordable.

Within the development there are a range of housing typologies – apartment blocks, stacked maisonettes, townhouses, mews streets, and multi-generational homes – offering a broad choice of accommodation for the changing needs of family life. In addition to the greens, private amenity is delivered in a variety of settings with balconies, terraces, and gardens interwoven into the fabric of the neighbourhood. Medium-rise apartments and terraces of townhouses frame the landscape spine, with multi-generational homes – three-storey houses with self-contained annexes – located on key street corners.

Active travel is encouraged with extensive provision of good-quality shared surfaces for pedestrians and cyclists, and parking restrictions reduce car-dependency. Healthy lifestyles are further promoted with play areas and an outdoor gym situated within landscape spaces. Tree-lined streets and gardens leading to front doors offer familiar reference points among the well-proportioned, brick terraced homes. While many of these strategies are more prevalent today, it should be remembered that the masterplan was envisaged before initiatives such as the Greater London Authority’s Healthy Streets hardwiring of design quality into development plans.

An independent post-occupancy evaluation has delivered encouraging results in relation to resident experience and operational usage. Positively responding to this feedback offers the opportunity to build on the success of the first stage of the masterplan and deliver comprehensive regeneration across the four remaining neighbourhoods and a lasting legacy for the area.

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RIBA Regional Awards 2023 sponsored by Gaggenau, EH Smith and Autodesk