Performance to the London Borough of Waltham Forest is... |
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- Customer
- London Borough of Waltham Forest
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- Procurement Route
- Single stage: Design and build
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- Completion Date
- March 2021
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- Value
- £14,000,000
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- Area
- 130,000ft
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- Architect
- Hawkins Brown
Waltham Forest’s Town Hall was built in 1942. After more than half a century, it needed work. This was the first stage in a scheme to open up the Town Hall Campus with a new public space for residents, visitors and staff. Later stages of the scheme were to contribute much-needed housing to the area, with 50% of the properties being affordable housing.
Evaluate
The London Borough of Waltham Forest appointed to ISG to lead the rejuvenation of their Grade II Listed Town Hall and develop a new civic square for the community. The architects on the project were Hawkins Brown.Reviewing design and ensuring buildability
This campus is the next step in the borough’s regeneration. Waltham Forest Council wanted the design to integrate a neighbourhood setting into a transformed, open landscape. They wanted to welcome the whole community – and visitors – leaving a lasting legacy for the next 100 years.
Deliver
Waltham Forest Town Hall and the nearby civic square was delivered by a highly skilled fit out team from ISG. The team’s dedication was of paramount importance – their hard work enabling a delivery time scale of 39 weeks
Working in a heritage building
Included within scope was the refurbishment of specific areas in the town hall. The goal was to create a fit-for-purpose, modern workspace with increased capacity for 500-800 staff. We needed to refurb and restore Grade II Listed meeting suites, office spaces and the council chamber, which required sensitivity and extra care. During works, we opened the council chamber to natural light by restoring the roof light as per the original Hepworth design. Furthermore, throughout the project, we maintained regular contact with the local authority’s heritage office to consult on whether to remove, store, keep, or protect existing fixtures and fittings.
We brought in specialist contractors where necessary. Years of decorations resulted in an unnecessary amount of paint layers. Specialists Historic Paint attended the site to strip back the paint layers. Another example of specialist contractors can be seen with our covings solution. Owing to years of refurbishments, the covings in the Chamber Hall were damaged. We used latex ‘squeezes’ to cast moulds. Then, our fibrous plaster specialists, Ribbon & Reed, faithfully replicated the covings.
Introducing accessibility
One of Waltham Forest Council’s key drivers was to make the building more accessible for employees and members of the public with accessibility issues. The ISG team installed a sympathetic Portland stone ramp at the front of the building and created an accessible route in the basement for cyclists and building users. Internally, we carried out major structural modifications to create ramps instead of short staircases. Previously, there wasn’t step-free access into the council chamber and lifts didn’t reach the top floor. We rectified both issues during our works.
Leaving a lasting legacy
For Waltham Forest Council, it wasn’t just about construction. ISG supported the area with several social value initiatives. From refurbishing AGE UK Walthamstow’s Garden space to producing care home packages and contributing to local food and baby banks, ISG’s team were determined to give back to the local community.
Walthamstow is renowned for its artistic heritage, so we invited local artists and children to contribute their designs to our site hoarding.
In total, ISG delivered £4,159,062 worth of social value, amounting to over 20% of the contract sum.
A conference room in Waltham Forest Town Hall.
Performance
Performance to Waltham Forest Council was an estate fit for future needs and a space that could leave a lasting legacy – supporting the next 100 years of community in Walthamstow.
As a consequence of Waltham Forest Town Hall’s incredible décor, the finished space is of great interest to TV and film crews. The committee rooms and corridors are regularly booked out for filming.
