Wicklow Street, London WC1

There is planning permission to add two floors to this existing single-story structure on cobbled Wicklow Street. Designed by Threefold Architects and set within the King's Cross Conservation Area, the resulting contemporary one-bedroom house will be a short walk from King's Cross St Pancras Station and enviably placed to enjoy the best of neighbouring Clerkenwell, Farringdon, Bloomsbury and Islington.

Full details of the planning documents can be found here.

The Architect

Founded in 2004 by architects Matt Driscoll, Jack Hosea and Renée Searle, award-winning Threefold Architects believe that buildings should help us be more productive, happy and inspired. Much attention is given to how people use, behave and feel in the spaces they live in, with the practice bringing together their and their clients' needs to achieve elegant and distinctive solutions.

The Tour

This innovative scheme will utilise a sympathetic and contextual material palette. The existing structure is laid out on the ground floor only, comprising a living/dining/kitchen room to the front of the plan, where a timber sash window looks out to Wicklow Street. A door of OSB board opens into an internal hall, off which there is a shower/WC. Along the hall to the rear of the plan is a double bedroom.

The proposal reuses much of the existing plan while providing two new floors above. The elegant and contemporary design nods to the vernacular style of the adjoining listed building, where alternate masonry and open balconies with wrought-iron railings define the street-facing façade. Meshed steel will be placed on the street-facing façade to soften its visual impact and profile.

The configuration of the scheme allows for an entrance lobby and study to the front of the ground floor, with the kitchen placed to the rear. The first floor will be laid out with the living room to the front and the bathroom to the rear, and the top floor places the bedroom to the street side of the building, with a terrace to the front and a dressing room at the rear.

Outdoor Space

The plans are for a terrace that flows from the bedroom on the top floor of the proposed scheme. Bounded by meshed railings and with space for a bistro set, the space will provide the perfect spot for morning coffee and crossword.

The Area

Wicklow Street is an enivably short walk from the eclectic, independent shops and cafes of Amwell Street and the numerous award-winning restaurants of Exmouth Market. Of particular note are Moro (and sister-restaurant Morito), The Quality Chop House, and The Eagle on Farringdon Road. Caravan has outlets on Farringdon Road and at Coal Drops Yard. Many of London's venerable cultural institutions are accessible by foot including the Barbican, the British Museum, the Brunswick Centre with the renovated Renoir cinema and the many beautiful garden squares of Bloomsbury.

Upper Street is a 15-minute walk away and offers a wealth of retail, culinary and design amenities, including Ottolenghi, Gail’s, Le Labo, Aria and twentytwentyone, as well as a host of national and independent retailers and restaurants. King’s Cross and Coal Drops Yard is around 10 minutes walk north; the recently redeveloped space is home to a magnificent public square with choreographed fountains and restaurants, including Caravan, Vinoteca, Dishoom, Granger and Co, plus shops A.P.C, COS, Margaret Howell and Wolf and Badger.

Wicklow Street is well situated for access to the public transport network, with stations in the immediate area including King's Cross and St. Pancras, Angel, Russell Square and Euston, for access to the Victoria, Metropolitan, Circle, Hammersmith, Piccadilly, District and Northern lines. Mainline trains and the Eurostar are also easily accessible at King's Cross St Pancras, and numerous bus routes serve the area.

Council Tax Band: B