You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Fiona Monkman is an in-house architect at Islington Council
Everyone deserves good architecture
Islington Council architect Fiona Monkman recently won the MJ Long architecture prize for council housing project Centurion Close. She argues that good-quality housing design can have a profound impact on people’s lives
I have worked at local authorities all my life: first at Sheffield Council, then at Barnsley Council and now at Islington. I have always been passionately committed to good-quality housing design, and I understand the impact it can have on people’s lives and their life chances.
For me, architecture is about relationships, primarily between people and the buildings they live and work in, and how that nurtures people, how they move through spaces, how they react with each other and with their surroundings.
“People of think of architecture as being about grand civic buildings and yet most of us spend most of our time in our homes, workplaces or schools”
Do people have an opportunity to pause and chat with neighbours in communal spaces that feel natural, enjoyable and comfortable? Are they able to own their space in a way that satisfies their needs? Are they able to achieve practical things such as study and development?
People of think of architecture as being about grand civic buildings and yet most of us spend most of our time in our homes, workplaces or schools. It is so important to me that these places work for people, so they can enjoy their spaces and can develop within them over time.
Everyone deserves good architecture, which is why I have always felt privileged to work within a local authority on public buildings, especially housing.
READ MORE
It was a great honour to receive the MJ Long Prize for Excellence in Practice 2022, as well as recognition for my work in new council housing at Islington Architects, the in-house practice within Islington Council.
The MJ Long Prize is part of the Architects’ Journal and Architectural Review’s W Awards, the successor to the Women in Architecture awards. Established in memory of architect, lecturer and writer Mary Jane Long, the prize is open to UK-based women architects and celebrates achievement with an emphasis on a project completed within the past 18 months.
“The site is a difficult one. It is constrained and pinched by neighbouring housing developments on three sides and a railway line on the fourth. It had previously been thought of as very difficult, or impossible, to develop”
The awards promote the often-overlooked role that female architects play in the creation of the built environment, in their role as innovators, change-makers and in their unique experience of cities.
The building I designed that was in particular focus for the W Award judges was Centurion Close. This is a new four-storey building on the Centurion Close Estate in Islington, which provides eight two-bed flats on a formerly derelict corner of the estate that was previously subjected to high levels of anti-social behaviour.
The site is a difficult one. It is constrained and pinched by neighbouring housing developments on three sides and a railway line on the fourth. It had previously been thought of as very difficult, or impossible, to develop.
The new housing block faces a pedestrian path, newly created as part of the scheme, linking the estate to Caledonian Road, and improving the permeability and natural surveillance of the public realm.
The existing community on the estate were particularly pleased with the re-introduction of this old, historic route, as it improved access down to the local shops and transport on Cally Road.
“The best prize of all is knowing how we are building homes that help to change people’s lives for the better”
In the communal interior space, I introduced a lift and freestanding staircase rising through a spacious entrance hall. Residents enjoy this space, as the area is generous and bright, and gives them the opportunity to stop, chat and be neighbourly to one another.
I arranged the flat plans around open-plan living spaces to the rear of the block, opening onto generous south-facing balconies. One resident described how these bright, naturally lit rooms instantly made her want to move in and make it her home.
Each floor is different on the elevation, with a recessed ground floor providing privacy for the ground-floor flats, a first floor piano nobile with large windows and partially recessed balconies, punched windows at second floor level, and a recessed terrace on the third floor.
Having worked in Islington for over 25 years, Centurion Close is similar to many of the sites in Islington that I have developed, such as Armour Close, King Henry Street and Lyon Street.
Each development has brought its own challenges, and over the years Islington Architects has perfected a skill at producing schemes on sites that planners and clients would often consider undevelopable. We can offer architectural services to other boroughs and are very happy to discuss this.
It was fantastic to win the MJ Long Prize, and shine a spotlight on the work that council architects do, day after day, week after week. The best prize of all is knowing how we are building homes that help to change people’s lives for the better.
Every one of these developments has brought badly needed new council homes, offering good new places for our residents to live in, to live their lives, and for future generations to grow.
Fiona Monkman, in-house architect, Islington Council
Sign up for our development and finance newsletter
Already have an account? Click here to manage your newsletters
