Hawkins\Brown wins approval for £11.8m Plumstead library revamp

An £11.8 million local authority-backed scheme will see the existing Grade II-listed building in Greenwich, designed by Woolwich borough engineer Frank Sumner, refurbished and reworked to house a new library complex. 

A non-listed rear extension will be flattened and a two-storey addition built to provide new leisure facilities.

Unanimously approved by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, the 2,329m² project is being hailed as ‘one of the critical elements’ of the ambitious Plumstead Urban Framework, which aims to ‘deliver the renewal and regeneration of the Plumstead area and provide modern leisure facilities and services for the local community’.

Councillor Danny Thorpe, the council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for regeneration and sustainability, said: ’This is a substantial milestone for the project which is going to be at the heart of our longer-term aim of revitalising the High Street and regenerating the area under the [framework].’

Jack Penford Baker, project architect for Hawkins\Brown, added: ‘The combination of a sensitive refurbishment of the listed building and a high-quality contemporary extension to the rear will provide a space for all in the community and re-activate the library as a beacon for Plumstead.’

Work on the site is expected to start this spring and to be completed by autumn 2019.

Project data

Location 232 Plumstead High Street, London
Type of project Civic: library and leisure
Client Royal Borough of Greenwich
Architect Hawkins\Brown
Planning consultant BPTW
Structural engineer Peter Brett Associates
M&E consultant Peter Brett Associates
Start on site Spring 2018
Completion Autumn 2019
Gross internal floor area 2,329m²
Form of contract Design and Build
Total cost £11.8 million