SOUTH CIRCULAR ROAD

44 South Circular Road is part of an early 18th century Georgian street-scape founded on the Gardiner Estate. It is an end of terrace house on the west end of South Circular Road.
As a protected Georgian building we were specifically commissioned to oversee the refurbishment and development of 44 South Circular Road. We were asked to conserve the structure and interiors as much as possible but were also keenly aware that this building must serve its occupants, and be a comfortable, attractive place for everyday living.
Our aim was to produce 6 no. apartments (5 no. 1-bed, 1 no. 2-bed) to the highest standards both in refurbishment and interior.
Firstly, there were two areas to consider: the main house, consisting of 3 existing apartments, and the rear extension, which was in very poor condition. While the main house was in need of a lot of restoration work of its own, we investigated the possibilities for the rear extension. We discovered that it was better to demolish and rebuild the rear rather than attempt to restore it as the extensive wet and dry rot throughout was permeating the building. The rebuild would prevent damage from spreading further. This afforded the additional 3 apartments to be built.
To stay in keeping with the original building as much as possible, brick was salvaged from the rear and used in the rebuild. Existing details, such as windows, joinery and cornicing were carefully recorded. We then replicated these details during the rebuild to match the existing building.
Externally, conservation and restoration continued on the main building including cleaning & re-pointing the existing external brickwork, refurbishment of external granite steps, restoration of existing front door, insertion of new cast-iron handrails to match the existing ones, refurbishment of existing sash windows and the refurbishment of existing roof and cast-iron rain water goods.
The interiors of the building were kept modern and clean while maintaining sensitivity to the to the building’s heritage with the use of specific materials, colours and light.
The result is that this building is a triumph in planning and conservation, marrying classical character with modern convenience.