What's happening in Islington

Open House London showcases great design in every London borough. Click here to find out what you can see in Islington this year.

Below, you can find out all about the local context of this borough's architecture, areas undergoing change and projects under construction.

It might be one of the smaller London boroughs, but Islington has more than its fair share of interesting buildings. With a strong heritage of Georgian and Victorian architecture the borough has almost 4,000 listed buildings and 39 conservation areas.

Islington also boasts some fascinating examples of modern architecture – such as the Kings Place waterside development, known for its theatrical curved-glass façade. Other buildings participating in Open House this year include the Almeida theatre, the Union Chapel and the Art Nouveau-style Finsbury Town Hall.

As the borough with the densest population in the capital, the pressures on space are significant yet there are some new and exciting developments taking place here.

Last year two hectares of run down and under-used land at City Road Basin near Old Street, were transformed into a fantastic new outdoor square and landscaped park. It became the first new public space to be created in London for years. The opening of the public space was the first major step in a wider plan for the City Road Basin, which will see new affordable housing and office space built on the site.

Islington sets ambitious standards of sustainability for new buildings - from maximising energy and water efficiency to encouraging use of renewable energy and sustainable materials. Climate change initiatives include fitting wind turbines to buildings and researching alternative methods of heat and power production. Islington also boasts more green roofs than any other London borough.

The local council is currently exploring the potential of developing small ‘infill’ plots of under-used land, to build new housing for its rapidly growing population. It is currently running a design competition to find a new high quality architectural style for new affordable family homes. The first site to be developed will be Vaudeville Court, a small site in Finsbury Park. Three architects have been shortlisted in the competition: Avanti Architects; Brady Mallalieu Architects and Levitt Bernstein. A winner is due to be announced in September. Further information is available here

Newsletter

Sign up for our e-newsletter

Email:  

Islington architecture showcased in Open House London 2011

See the listings here

2010 Highlights

A walk around Hoxton and Old Street examining the transformation of public space was led by the architects involved as well as Evening Standard architecture critic Kieran Long

An Islington resident said of the event: “It encourages me to look
at Islington differently during the rest of the year. Open House has revealed the riches on my doorstep and given me pride in the number of international projects being planned a mere ten minutes from my house in N1”

A volunteer in Islington said: “I volunteered for the first time and found it very enjoyable, it is impressive to see the amount of people who have an interest in our city. Through Open House you can learn from what other
people have done in their neighbourhood and what is
successful and what is not”

A visitor said: “Whistler Street in Highbury was just enchanting, I wished i lived there! Union Chapel; what a jewel”

“The owner of W. Plumb Family Butchers gave a lovely talk. He was a real enthusiast, a pleasure to meet!”

 

 

 

...