Boundary by Conran and Partners

Boundary, London, was presented at the AT Awards live finals on 20 September 2023 to a jury comprising Simon Allford, Esther Robinson Wilde, Ed Jarvis, Amin Taha, Patrick Bellew, and Chair Lee Mallett. Read about how the project has stood the test of time.

Credit: Paul Raeside

Completed
2008

Conran and Partners’ skilful refurbishment and extension of Boundary Street, a Victorian industrial building (former printworks) in London’s Shoreditch comprises a 17-bedroom hotel, ground-floor café, bakery and food store, a fine-dining (basement) restaurant, and a two-storey, copper-clad roof extension with a roof garden, bar and grill.

Central to the project’s success are its generous relationship with the surrounding streets, and its interior spaces, which are accessible, familiar and characterful, creating an ‘authentic’ destination for visitors and locals alike. Each hotel bedroom has an individual design twist. The rooftop bar and grill provide both an orangery and an outdoor terrace for the warmer months. Looking out across the skyline, the rooftop retreat with its secret garden has an escapist quality.

Credit: Paul Raeside

The project included many technical challenges – not least significant structural works to accommodate two new floors, the installation of a basement-level drainage and pumping system, the sinking of two geothermal boreholes on what is a tight urban site, and the introduction of two new lifts, which had to be ‘threaded’ through the existing fabric. Added to this, the existing steel and concrete floors required extensive remedial works to bring them up to current acoustic and fire regulation standards.

Cited by Tower Hamlets Council as an ‘excellent model of how a successful development can contribute to the place making of an area’, the scheme continues to engage with its context at street level, while offering a retreat from the hustle and bustle of city life. The architect commented, ‘This project allowed us to further hone our approach to working with existing buildings – how much of the original fabric can be retained, which elements are important to leave ‘untouched’, and the importance of authenticity and not erasing the stories of the past.’