Architecture · London
Airspace development & roof extension
A full airspace development in South East London — an unused rooftop transformed into new residential homes. The mansard-style roof extension in dark zinc-effect cladding sits naturally on the existing brick building, and the new apartments inside are bright, functional and built to last. Taken from architectural design and technical drawings through site management to completion — these are photographs of the finished building.
Airspace is the hardest site in the city: the plot is someone's roof, the neighbours live directly below the works, planning wants the new storey to disappear into the streetscape, and every structural decision is negotiated with a building that was never designed to carry another floor.
The new storey was drawn as a mansard — the one roof form London planning already trusts — clad in dark zinc-effect panels and set back behind the brick parapet so the block reads as always having worn it. The structure was engineered lightweight to sit on the existing frame, works were sequenced to keep residents below undisturbed, and the plans inside were cut for real life: open-plan kitchen-living under the best light, bedrooms to the quiet side, and the awkward eaves absorbed into storage and kitchen runs.
New homes conjured from a roofline — approved by planning, tolerated by the neighbours, and finished to a standard people are happy to call home.
Daylight-led: dormer windows drop light into every habitable room, rooflights serve the deeper plan, and the interiors keep a bright neutral finish so the loft storey never feels like an attic.
