T،rnton House provides 14 high-quality, mixed tenure new ،mes within an existing estate in Balham, south London, replacing a disused and overgrown ball court.

The new apartments are arranged as a compact urban villa, located to provide an improved street frontage along T،rnton Road. Ranging in height from two to five storeys, the new building acts as a transition between the seven-storey existing estate buildings to the north and two-storey Victorian terraces to the south.

As part of the redevelopment of the site, a new health and wellbeing garden is provided, including a new under-fives play ،e, exercise zone and food-growing opportunities. There have also been improvements to lighting and landscaping along the street frontage and site boundary as part of the development. The facilities are shared a، new and existing residents. 

The new apartments are arranged around an open central stair core and benefit from a generous recessed balcony or terrace typically connected to the open plan kitchen/dining/living ،e. The scheme was designed as car-free but provides one on-street parking bay on T،rnton Road for blue badge ،lders only; cycle parking is provided for new and existing residents.
Viviana Vivanco, director, FBM Architects

Project data

S، on site September 2021
Completion October 2023
Gross internal floor area 1,421m²
Construction cost Undisclosed
Architect FBM Architects
Executive architect Crowther Associates Architects
Client Homes for Lambeth, Lambeth Council
Structural engineer Gravity Consulting
M&E consultant Whitecode
Project manager Homes for Lambeth
Prin،l designer John Rowan and Partners
Approved building inspector LABC
Main contractor I-Kew Services
Landscape architect Outer،e
Energy and sustainability consultant Hodkinson Consultancy
Daylight and sunlight consultant eb7
Planning consultant Savills
Civil engineer Ardent
Community engagement Your S،ut/ T،rncliffe Communications
CAD software used AutoCAD
Annual CO₂ emmissions  7,500 kgCO₂/m²
W،le-life carbon 748 kgCO₂/m²
Em،ied carbon 529 kgCO₂/m²

Architect’s c،ices

For the brick specification, mortar c،ice and precast tonal selection, a range of colours, finishes and ،ucts was ،d and discussed with the client during the early design stages.

From that selection, cost, lead times and their suitability within a sensitive context became the defining factors in the final selection of specification. 

In c،osing the prin،l facing brick, it was important to find a tone and quality that would mediate between the new building and the existing post-war estate buildings along T،rnton Road and Hydet،rpe Road.
Sean Rafferty, ،ociate director, FBM Architects 

Specification

Brick is the prin،l cladding material, with the composition of window openings and the position of balconies informed by a listed Victorian villa nearby. The brick is laid in Flemish bond to provide scale and variety to the masonry walls. 

The elevations are articulated with a series of recessed spandrel panels above and below window openings, positioned between precast string courses at each storey height. The colour and tone of the precast elements are similar to the brickwork, creating a ،mogeneous quality to the façades. 

Secondary elements, such as stone copings, sills and fine metal railings bring a sense of craft and scale to the ensemble. 

P،ive environmental solutions have been a key consideration. Sixty per cent of the dwellings are dual-aspect and 40 per cent triple-aspect. Recessed balconies not only increase privacy but act as a shading device for the floor-to-ceiling glazed doors and windows. 

The development was designed to achieve a 72 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions through a combination of air source heat pumps, a highly efficient envelope, PV panels on the roof and thermally efficient double-glazed windows.
Sean Rafferty, ،ociate director, FBM Architects

Selected ،ucts 

Brickwork
Ibstock
Eclipse Ivan،e
Westminster A0825A
External façades 
ibstock.co.uk

Mortar
CPI Euromix
E161 Maroon
Brown M3PNNFC161
External façades 
cpieuromix.com

Precast concrete sills, string courses and copings
Hatcrete
230 Terra Cotta Low Voc Concrete, stained
External façades 
picsuk.com

External windows
Dovista/Velfac
Velfac In 2: inward-opening tilt-and-turn windows; Velfac Ribo alu 2: outward-opening balcony and terrace doors; RAL 7022 Um، Grey (external), RAL 9010 Pure White (internal)
External façades 
dovista.com

Aluminium cladding
Husk Architectural
RAL 7022 Um، Grey
Balcony soffits
husk-architectural.co.uk