At Atelier Ten, we believe the future of workplace lies in regenerating existing assets, improving carbon and environmental performance, functionality, user experience and social value. Our starting point is always understanding the opportunities and constraints of existing buildings to provide cost-effective and innovative solutions for the reduction of embodied and operational carbon emissions, whilst providing comfortable and healthy environments for the future occupants. 

The Tower Hamlets Town Hall, which we worked on alongside AHMM, adapts the Grade II-listed Royal London Hospital in London with a strong focus on decarbonisation. The project pioneered all-electric solutions (including air source and water-to-water heat pumps and induction hobs) in London, when fossil fuel-sourced heating, cooling and cooking systems were the policy-compliant norm. Extensive engagement with the local planning authority since project inception in 2016 allowed us to shift the mindset towards what was an innovative solution back then, but which was subsequently adopted by the London Plan in 2021 as the preferred option. 

One of the greatest challenges was understanding the building make-up. The building dates back to 1757, and subsequent extensions and alterations resulted in complex circulation and structural form. Four levels of surveys, ranging from drone survey to point cloud survey, TrueView survey and façade survey, were required to unlock its potential. Extensive coordination during the design and construction stages allowed for better budgeting and planning, as well as reducing risks. 

This level of surveying requires time and should always be planned from the onset to avoid delays in the programme and unexpected costs. Knowing your patient is key to the success of such a project and should not be underestimated. This was possible through close collaboration among the Architect, Heritage Consultant, Main Contractor and ourselves, the Sustainability Consultant, who used our analytical expertise to inform the Client's and local authority's design decisions as the project developed. 

The complexity, resulting from different floor layouts, internal heights and fenestration, presented a challenge when integrating a whole new servicing system, but also provided an opportunity to think creatively about the use of each space. We brought the client along on the journey to help minimise the level of building fabric and service intervention, allowing the project to achieve low embodied and whole life carbon, while delivering spaces fit for purpose and full of character. 

The team carried out extensive works on the building fabric to bring it to contemporary standards, while uncovering more original features that had been lost during different extensions and alterations over the years. False ceilings were removed to engage the thermal mass of the building, reducing peak loads and improving thermal comfort. The building fabric was mostly repaired, taking advantage of its good structural condition. Where possible, windows were reglazed to improve performance and frames repaired. All that meant that the existing building was able to achieve an airtightness level of a new building. 

The same minimalist approach has been applied to the new extension, which respectfully greets the existing south façade, creating a sense of delight, with a new atrium between the two bathed in natural light. The extension provides open workspace with a uniform, but flexible layout at each level, typical of new offices, and contributes to improving environmental performance of the whole. This extension is characterised by climate-responsive facades achieved through extensive parametric studies and close coordination with the Architect and Façade Engineer. The facades do not only perform an environmental function of balancing solar gains for thermal comfort and daylight for visual comfort, but also provide a variety of views from both inside and outside, which often lack in modern commercial buildings. 

For us, the Tower Hamlets Town Hall has been a great regeneration project, where decarbonisation of and reconnection with the local community to an existing asset went hand-in-hand with placemaking, creative thinking and effective communication through all the phases of a project.