Architecture and design Archives

Enjoying life on our rooftop terraces

March 27, 2023October 4, 2023 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

London’s first time buyers have made it clear that having access to outdoor spaces is really important. In our post-COVID-19 world, city makers have felt first-hand the difference this can make.

Our design ethos is to build homes designed for city living, and a key element of this is to include shared spaces in every Pocket Living development. Ample communal spaces encourage a sense of community, and our rooftop terraces have become particularly popular. Here are a few of our favourites.

Designing places for people

June 20, 2022June 20, 2022 Hugo Owen 1 Comment

A blog by Hugo Owen, Marketing and Communications Executive

Have you ever wanted to understand what theories go into making a great place?

Most of us look at buildings and instinctively understand whether or not we like them. But when asked exactly what it is about the place that we like, it is sometimes harder to explain.

At Pocket Living, our design team has many years of experience in understanding exactly what it is that helps elevate our built environments. In this blog, I will outline a few simple design features that we tend to make great places.

Interview with former Pocket resident and healthy buildings expert Ben Channon

March 22, 2022June 6, 2022 Hayley Donigan Leave a comment

The way spaces are designed can have a huge impact on the mental health of the people that use them. Whether it’s having access to the outdoors or room to work from home, promoting wellness in our developments is top of our agenda.

To explore what it’s like to live in a Pocket home, we spoke to former Pocket resident Ben Channon about what makes a building ‘healthy’ and how we can improve the wellness of our residents. Ben works for a consultancy called Ekkist, which focuses on enhancing human health and wellbeing through design.

Sustainable developments – Harbard Close IG11

July 15, 2021July 15, 2021 Hayley Donigan Leave a comment

Our design team is clever – they understand that sustainability goes hand in hand with creating quality homes for modern living. Minimising waste and maximising efficiency is at the heart of what they do; they focus on inventive use of space and efficient planning so that real value is returned to our buyers.

Each of our developments is completely unique, with the team spending a lot of time getting the eco credentials up to scratch – from the methods of construction used to the paint on the walls. Our latest development in Barking, Harbard Close IG11, is a great example of a sustainable housing development in London. Read on to find out more about it.

Interview with first time buyers India and Hallam

March 25, 2021March 25, 2021 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

All of our residents are unique, so we love learning about how they settle in to their first homes. This interview with first time buyers India and Hallam dives into their favourite parts of their Pocket home at Arklow Road SE14.

A striking new building for Kingston on Cowleaze Road KT2

November 14, 2017November 14, 2017 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

Our first scheme in Kingston has been designed by the RIBA Stirling Prize winner Haworth Tompkins. Best known for their stunning Stirling Prize-winning Everyman Theatre in Liverpool, we are thrilled to be working with them on our smaller, but no less stunning, residential scheme near the town centre of Kingston-upon-Thames.

Providing 21 one bedroom Pocket homes and 5 two bedoom Pocket Edition homes, Cowleaze Road KT2 will be an intimate and stable community of local home owners. We spoke to the team at Haworth Tompkins about the background to the site and their ideas for the building:

Cowleaze exterior_low res_cropped

Handmade mugs inspired by Mapleton Crescent SW18

September 6, 2017September 25, 2017 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

It’s unusual for a building to have a matching set of mugs. Then again, Mapleton Crescent SW18 isn’t your typical building. Tall, green and slender, its façade will shimmer with bespoke green-glazed terracotta tiles. These tiles were designed with the help of Loraine Rutt, our consultant ceramicist, working closely with architects Metropolitan Workshop.

Loraine is a fine art ceramicist and we spoke to her to find out more about her involvement in the project – and why she was inspired to make a limited range of mugs to celebrate the building.

“When architects Metropolitan Workshop proposed a terracotta façade for Mapleton Crescent SW18, they asked me to advise on creating a glaze that would feel ‘handmade’, rather than factory-produced, bringing a human scale to this tall building. They wanted to give life and movement to the building that would catch the eye of locals and residents, and continue looking good with minimal maintenance.”
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Affordable homes in Zone 1 – Sail Street and Juxon Street SE11 completed

July 13, 2017July 13, 2017 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

Our latest city makers have moved in at Sail Street and Juxon Street SE11, North Lambeth

We’re so proud of our latest schemes in the Borough of Lambeth, Sail Street and Juxon Street SE11, which between them have provided 70 new homes to local city makers. Built on the edge of the China Walk estate using the latest modular construction technology, they’re a handsome pair.

Sail Street SE11 Juxon Street SE11

Sail Street-01 Sail Street-65
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Naked pods at Mapleton Crescent SW18

July 7, 2017July 13, 2017 Hannah Godwin Leave a comment

It’s a bit like seeing a building undressed on site today at Mapleton Crescent SW18. The last few pods are being craned in, before our green goddess puts her clothes on – a fetching set of green tiles.

Pocket homes complete at Rosina Street E9

July 3, 2017July 3, 2017 Hannah Godwin 2 Comments

Stunning new Hackney scheme for 29 local first time buyers

Rosina Street E9 was designed by Hackney-based Waugh Thistleton Architects, and completed in March 2017. The Pocket flats were sold at a 20% discount to the surrounding market and the building is now home to 29 local first time buyers. It’s the second Pocket Living scheme in Hackney, and it’s one we’re especially proud of – when you look at these photos, you’ll see why!