jobs and ticket giveaways from Barking and Dagenham Council Sign up to our One Borough newsletter Help us improve the cost of living support in Barking and Dagenham by taking part in our survey Your feedback is invaluable in enhancing the support we offer delivered a keynote speech at the Association of School and College Leaders Annual Conference on 14 March where she named Becontree Primary School as an exemplar of inclusive schooling This recognition follows her visit to Becontree Primary School in December where she learned about the innovative work being undertaken by the school Barking and Dagenham Council has been at the forefront of developing inclusive schools delivering better outcomes for children while navigating tough challenges It has pioneered the Additional Resource Provision (ARP) model which are part of mainstream schools and deliver strong outcomes for children with SEND Becontree Primary is an outstanding example and provides exceptionally well for children with SEND both in their ARP and mainstream classes Bridget Phillipson emphasised the importance of inclusive education have the most to gain from high and rising standards A classroom that caters to all is a strength Children thinking differently in different ways is a gift “One father told me about his daughter at Becontree Primary School in Dagenham which has a SEN unit for children with autism spectrum disorder His daughter moving into a mainstream school gave him faith that she'll be able to achieve as an adult Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement "I am delighted that the Secretary of State chose to visit Becontree Primary School in December and spoke of her visit in her recent speech “I am incredibly proud both of Becontree under the great leadership of Marie Ziane and of the many inclusive schools and ARPs in the borough SENCos and staff for the impressive and committed work they do every day to support our children and young people with SEND.” Police were called to a Becontree station on Wednesday night following a serious assault News | London A District Line station has been shut for over 12 hours as police investigate a stabbing The British Transport Police (BTP) were called to Becontree underground station at around 10pm on Wednesday following reports of a serious assault Paramedics also attended the scene and a person was taken to hospital with stab injuries The BTP believe that their wounds are not considered to be life-threatening or life-changing Police enquiries into the incident are ongoing but the attack is believed to be an isolated incident Detective Inspector Marvin Bruno said: "There is no place for violence on the railway network and our detectives and officers are working tirelessly to investigate this incident “While we believe this was an isolated incident the public will see an increase in high-visibility patrols in the area and across the network to provide reassurance." Anyone who may have witnessed the incident or has information is asked to contact BTP by texting 61016 or by calling 0800 40 50 40 Prince Louis steals the show at VE Day parade as he keeps dad William looking sharp and mimics brother George Prince Louis steals show with sweet antics at VE parade VE Day 2025 fashion: best looks from the day VE Day 2025 fashion: Princess of Wales to Lady Victoria Starmer Royals watch historic flypast as huge crowds turns out for VE Day 80th anniversary  Royals watch historic Red Arrows flypast for VE Day 80th anniversary UK tourists face major travel shake-up as Dubai airport set to close David Beckham’s 50th birthday bash in London 'shut down' by council over noise complaints David Beckham’s 50th birthday bash 'shut down' over noise complaints the Becontree Estate in east London turns 100 years old To celebrate the largest council estate in the UK Inside Housing went round to see what makes the estate so special and how it has stood the test of time “Like heaven with the gates off.” That’s how the Becontree Estate appeared to one new resident who moved there from the East End of London between the wars a local historian and former manager of the estate the 27,000-home Becontree Estate is celebrating its 100-year anniversary mostly in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham (LBBD) and remains the biggest council estate in Europe Becontree’s genesis can be found in the horrors of the World War I had promised “homes fit for heroes” to the mostly working-class men who returned home from the fighting – and with the 1919 Housing Act his government set about honouring that pledge The first such homes were built at Becontree in 1921 on what was then the market gardens of Dagenham Village A dedicated railway was built to carry building materials into the site from a newly built jetty on the Thames Many of the families who moved into Becontree came from the East End “Moving from the East End to somewhere like Becontree was unbelievable,” says Mr Jennings “I was a five-year-old boy when I moved here and I remember it as a sea of green.” while hundreds of smaller ‘amenity greens’ were situated on street corners You were never more than a short walk from a green space “We talk about the 15-minute community – that’s what this was but 100 years ago,” says Darren Rodwell leader of Barking and Dagenham Council and lifelong Becontree resident All we’re doing [today] is going back to what people realised was important back then.” The homes themselves are an immediate link to that past Around two-thirds were sold under the Right to Buy and as on other estates the personal touches added by proud new owners – pebble-dashed walls new front doors – have broken up Becontree’s original red-brick homogeneity the buildings themselves are still standing “They’re built so well – solid as a rock drilling into the lintel would burn your drill out,” says Mr Jennings “Those houses are still in incredible condition.” The estate has seen some major changes over its lifetime Most of the privet hedges that used to demarcate every front garden have made way for parking spaces “We used to say you only ever saw a car if there was a wedding a funeral or a police chase,” Mr Jennings recalls Retired council worker Peter Railton moved to Becontree from the East End in 1943 after his family’s home in Poplar was bombed “The community spirit was really good – and that’s something we have lost,” he says Mr Railton has done more than most to bring that spirit back and a gardening club in 2000; both are still going strong another global event – the pandemic – also helped to re-energise that sense of community We’ve got a nice little banjo here [the local term for cul-de-sacs]… my son and I used to play [brass instruments] for the neighbours every Thursday working-class area is today a microcosm of London’s modern diversity – and that is one of Becontree’s greatest strengths “Diversity has brought life back into the Becontree,” he says And that sense of community is still there What I see growing here again is a new birth of community.” as heavenly as it seemed to its first residents The area is blighted by deprivation; 50% of children on the estate live in poverty music and architecture to mark the estate’s centenary the council hopes to amplify that pride and remind Becontree’s residents of their estate’s history and strengths “Part of the centenary is to celebrate the 100 years that have been,” says Mr Rodwell “But it’s also to say to people – be proud of what you have because we want it to last another 100 years.” Suraya Begum lives with her husband in one of the larger houses on Becontree She grows aubergines and tomatoes in her front garden and she’s very keen to show them off The Begums moved to the UK from Bangladesh 30 years ago “And this is the quietest part of Dagenham.” New to Inside Housing? Click here to register and receive our weekly council focus round-up straight to your inbox Already have an account? Click here to manage your newsletters the Becontree estate in Barking and Dagenham is still the largest public housing scheme in the world Started in the 1920s under the ‘Homes Fit for Heroes’ pledge it is a historically important development built between 1921-35 with 26,000 homes erected by the London County Council over a 10 square km area Like many early 20th century London housing schemes it was constructed on green fields; a very different context from the one in which councils find themselves today and one which is further compounded by the challenge of delivering a similar quality of homes in a lot less space This was the challenge encountered in early 2018 when Be First – the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham’s wholly owned regeneration company – commissioned Archio to design what would come to be the 92nd iteration of housing type on the historic estate Taking the form of two villas of three and four storeys in height and built at a density of 120 homes per hectare – five times the density of the surrounding estate – Archio’s new addition of 19 affordable homes to rent is a welcome mix of 13 one-beds offering variety to the predominant single house typology characterising the area Without a range of civic references in the immediate estate Archio looked to other successful LCC developments built at the time such as the Ossulston Estate in Camden where the qualities of the Becontree Estate housing had been scaled up to create a sense of civic generosity with a lively character This research culminated in a set of guiding values or principles found to instil a sense of pride in these estates; namely a sense of civic generosity and dignity as well as an expressiveness that reinforces an already established sense of identity “What we have tried to do with this building is to take a cue from the existing context to create a gentle density that delivers the maximum number of homes whilst feeling at home in its surroundings,” explains Archio director Mellis Haward The resultant forms are perhaps best described as ‘super-sized’ houses Wedged between a row of terraced housing and a nursery the scheme borrows from the formal expression of its context to create a deliberately pared back This aesthetic reference is important given that the neo-Georgian expression characterising Becontree was a deliberate stylistic break from the dominant Victorian architecture of the time indicating that the social housing scheme marked a departure from Victorian laissez faire attitudes towards social care 200 Becontree stands alongside the change it wishes to see in social housing and egalitarian language that feels familiar and inviting in its newfound context sculpted forms standing proud in a monolithic Michelmersh brick construction their lively roofscape counters the flatness of the area surrounding them Borrowing from the language of the estate with its low eaves lines that come down to one story at the street edge this sweeping roof is clad in dark sand-faced clay tiles A thick white perimeter coping of precast concrete caps and hugs the edges of both blocks A variety of geometries puncture the elevation including orthogonal windows The base is rusticated in reference to the corner façade across the street; a detail that ties both buildings back to the rusticated bases of Palladian villas whereas the shop has a projecting brick pattern the two villas invert this into a recessed pattern This inversion of detail occurs throughout reference the infilled openings of the side elevation around the corner Moments like these provide relief to an otherwise compact and continuous elevation as well as helping to stitch the scheme back into the fabric of the old estate Generosity is a key hallmark of the existing estate and central to the success of Archio’s scheme with the original Becontree Estate having been laid out to Garden City principles featuring wide spacious avenues and opening onto winding roads Corner plots in particular command attention often cut back with the space in front dedicated to lush greenery At a time when high density carries connotations of mean a generous design that taps into and accentuates some of the more spatial qualities of place and resonates with the fondness existing residents have for their neighbourhood is a welcome addition the principal façade of Atkin House splays back off Becontree Avenue creating pockets of green space beside the main street This forms a public entrance to a shared community space the outcome of a fruitful engagement process which changed the brief from being purely housing focused Users wanted this flexible space in addition to the synagogue and church that already existed on the site where again the building line of Atkin House pulls in beckoning pedestrians into the heart of the scheme “Together with BeFirst we saw the opportunity of extending the ‘red line boundary’ and opening up the site by reviving the pedestrian route to the north which will soon be an active playstreet – reenforcing that connection to Becontree Primary School across the road,” Haward explains This effect is enhanced by having large sloping roofs that fall away from the central courtyard ensuring there is no reduction in daylight and sunlight reaching the neighbouring nursery and projecting dormer windows that reduce overlooking into the back gardens of residential properties Low eaves lines around the perimeter result in high roof apexes around the central courtyard Angular paths of concrete multi pavers lead to each block Wide bands of soil will become shrouded in planting as the seasons change Atkin House and Branton House have different internal configurations Both blocks contain simple light-filled spaces helped by the fact that all flats are 10% over the nationally ascribed space standards and WCs form part of a central service core freeing up flats to occupy the perimeter in a variety of configurations that offer a spectrum of views Rejecting the cellular arrangement typical of much of today’s social housing the internal layout often positions a balcony at the centre of the plan allowing views from one side of the flat to the other bringing light into the corridors and creating a sense of well-being The dormer windows provide a special space for sitting down to have breakfast while bedrooms in the eaves enjoy rooflights with a view of the sky the WC is shifted to the centre of the plan This has ample space for storage and possibly additional pieces of furniture turning a typically dark and overcrowded space into essentially another room At a time when mass production and standardisation coupled with value engineering and a race towards efficiency closeted spaces with little storage and little ability to accommodate changing family structures these internal arrangements provide a breath of fresh air showing that a lot can be achieved with very little living spaces and bedrooms shift as you move up the floors,” says Archio director Kyle Buchanan “This lends each of the flats an individual character and we have enhanced the variety between homes further using dormer windows entrances and stairways are bold and robust which will extend the lifetime of the building.” all flats are heated via air-source heat pumps signalling a move towards renewable methods of energy generation with a 62% carbon reduction against building regulations and U-values in line with the LETI standards Underfloor heating frees up space that would otherwise be taken up by radiators these ensure a good level of thermal comfort internally In a way the success of schemes of this scale serves as a reminder that the legacy of estates like Becontree can be balanced even with today’s overbearing demands there is sometimes a sense that the values 20th century social housing once stood for are a thing of the past; something to be remembered fondly but hard to replicate today it is possible to address challenges relating to infrastructure community and heritage in an economic way that can still result in a dignified “Like their now historic neighbours our new homes are also being delivered to meet the needs of local people – those who now find themselves priced out of Becontree,” Buchanan explains denser type demonstrates the extent to which infill housing can build on and contribute to an existing sense of place and provide generous homes with a strong identity of their own.” © Built Environment and Architecture Media Ltd 2025 We use cookies and other tracking technologies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website analyse your use of our products and services assist with our promotional and marketing efforts These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies but some parts of the site may not work then These cookies allow the provision of enhance functionality and personalisation They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages then some or all of these functionalities may not function properly These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site They help us know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site All information these cookies collect is anonymous we will not know when you have visited our site These cookies are set through our site by our advertising partners They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant ads on other sites you will not experience our targeted advertising across different websites These cookies are necessary to display content from social networks such as Facebook In such a way that you can share our content with your favourite social networks We want to make it easier and more accessible for people to retrofit their homes associate director at London Borough of Barking & Dagenham’s Be First regeneration company To continue reading this article pleaseLogin or Register From golden cement lions to crazy paving facades from Corinthian columns to pebbledash galore a new show is celebrating 100 years of gaudy surreal additions to the London council estate fantastical genius of BecontreeThis article is more than 3 years oldFrom golden cement lions to crazy paving facades Lived in Architecture – Becontree at 100 is at the Riba Architecture Gallery Designing in close collaboration with residents Archio raises the roofline on the Becontree Estate with two three and four storey villas inspired by generous spaces Becontree Estate – once the largest social housing project in the world – has welcomed its 92nd housing type The estate was built under the promise of ‘homes fit for heroes’ made by prime minister Lloyd George after World War I which saw the construction of 1.1 million new council homes for returning veterans with 26,000 homes built in 91 different housing types between 1921 and 1939 It remains the largest social project in Europe valour and commitment to social welfare of its time While externally the building looks playful with a dramatic sloped roofline and varied windows, this is contrasted internally with an efficient, rigorous plan. The core of the Atkins building is composed of the lift, bathroom and stairs with the flats placed around the centre. This economically viable scheme follows an easily adaptable principle for the future. Along with being cost-efficient, the flats are generously sized with each being 10% above the national space standards. A pedestrian street, School Way, separates a nursery from the two buildings to the north. Archio persuaded the council to extend the redline to include the street, which has been tarmaced and decorated with convoluted lines. This serves as an important thoroughfare for local school children and connects the estate with the nursery. As new residents settle in, it is easy to imagine this space and the communal garden between Atkins House and Branton House being used to host different activities. ‘Community engagement for us is not a tick box exercise but essential to our design process. We don’t pretend to know everyone’s lived experience but through co-designing we can ensure the architecture will service their needs,’ stresses Haward. Building socially-conscious homes, in an era of increasing inequality, doesn't come without challenges however. ‘We have to work hard to create the world we want,’ explains Haward. Despite this, Archio’s growing portfolio adds to the increasing number of practices designing socially conscious homes that envision new ways of living. Latest articlesRIBAJ Spec: Architecture for Housing and Residential Development Webinar20 May 2025SpecRIBAJ Spec: Architecture for Housing and Residential Development Webinar Baillie Baillie Architects used contemporary techniques while drawing inspiration from local traditions What does neuroscience tell us about what to promote or avoid in facade design Sign up to receive regular briefings, updates and our weekly newsletter – all designed to bring you the best stories from RIBAJ.com Sign up to receive regular briefings, updates and our weekly newsletter – all designed to bring you the best stories from RIBAJ.com updates and our weekly newsletter – all designed to bring you the best stories from RIBAJ.com Residents take part in Becontree Forever project which promises to ‘celebrate estate’s radical past and reimagine future’ When it was built after the first world war, Becontree in Dagenham was billed as the world’s largest ever housing estate – a modern utopia where more than 100,000 war veterans and workers from Dagenham in east London would have an inside toilet a proper bathroom and gardens front and back A hundred years after the first “home for heroes” was completed in 1921 Becontree’s centenary is being marked by a series of events and public realm investments including two fantastical playgrounds and a range of street furniture produced from upcycled rubble About 85,000 people still live on Becontree, with about a third of homes rented as social housing and three-bed terraces now selling for about £350,000. Many residents have been involved in the Becontree Forever project which promises to “celebrate the radical past of the estate and reimagine its future anew” The Irish artist Eva Rothschild will build a playground in Parsloes Park called the Becontree Pyramids referencing ancient architecture and the modular formats of Minecraft and Lego marked by a dance performance with teenage Becontree Estate residents working with the world-renowned Studio Wayne McGregor The Becontree Estate in the 1930s. Photograph: Daily Mail/Rex/ShutterstockThe British-Nigerian designer Yinka Ilori will build a second playground in the same park remaking an out-of-use play area with structures inspired by the park’s original pink flamingos whose wings were clipped so they could not fly away He will collaborate with residents of different ages and cultures to produce accessible equipment including tall totems birdwatching and bird-nesting structures and a basketball court The artist duo Studio Morison will make a range of terrazzo street furniture from upcycled rubble from the estate again working closely with estate residents The architects nimtim and the artist Katie Schwab commissioned in partnership with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) will co-design three new public squares with local residents reimagining green spaces at the end of terraces as places for people to meet and play The British-Nigerian designer Yinka Ilori will build a second playground in Parsloes park Photograph: Andrew MeredithThe Portuguese artist Leonor Antunes will work with fabricators on the estate to produce a series of modernist commemorative plaques to celebrate residents from the estate’s past – both famous names as well as unsung heroes Those who grew up on Becontree include Alf Ramsey and the former archbishop of Canterbury George Carey Other projects include an audio work by the former Dagenham resident Larry Achiampong and a major exhibition at RIBA in September 2021 The commissions are produced and curated by Create London an arts organisation which led the east London cultural programme for the 2012 Olympics in addition to other local and national partners The programme is supported by the London borough of Barking and Dagenham using its Community Infrastructure Levy, a charge paid by developers to help mitigate the impact of their developments on the local community, as well as the National Lottery Heritage Fund The council hopes the schemes will bring together a community which has fragmented as major local employers have closed (such as the May & Baker chemical plant) or many residents must travel outside the borough for employment said Becontree was much more diverse now than when it was built with almost half of residents coming from black or minority ethnic backgrounds – many from Nigeria and Ghana Becontree Forever would tell their stories as well as those of the original inhabitants “It’s really important that we shift that lens so that we are not just telling the same stories we incorporate the histories of other people.” This article was amended on 1 March 2021 to clarify that other organisations besides Create London are involved in the commissioning and curation process; and to correct a misnaming of Becontree Forever as Becontree Together Archio has completed a new type of villa within the Becontree Estate for the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham’s in-house regeneration company part of an overall plan to create more housing in the borough is the product of deep research into the characteristics of the Becontree estate in north Dagenham and delivers a ‘gentle density’ of 19 dwellings and a community spaces spread across two buildings on a 0.4ha former synagogue site on Avenue Road includes two large ‘suburban villas’ with the designs seeking to respond to the architecture of the original estate The pioneering Becontree Estate was created in the 1920s under the Homes Fit for Heroes pledge and remains the largest public housing scheme in the world with 26,000 homes It was built by London County Council between 1921 and 1935 discovered that there were 91 house types developed for the estate with its new scheme at 200 Becontree representing the 92nd iteration The garden city principles that had been applied to the area are also a key part of its character with the new development considering the open landscape and pockets of greenery Two villas have been created rather than one monolithic block to reduce the impact on the surrounding low-rise housing while offering five times the density of its neighbours The villa-style blocks reference the estate’s Neo-Georgian architecture which was key in the 1920s as marking a departure from Victorian approaches Key elements that interpret details of nearby houses include exaggerated dormers semicircular entrance arches and round windows Landscape weaves through the site with a playstreet transforming an existing cut-through into an active playspace rooms are well-proportioned with a variety of living spaces that provide each home with its own identity Eaves change to match neighbouring building heights as well as surrounding dormers and windows aiming to create homes with individual character Bedrooms are stacked vertically to minimise disruption as well as being located away from the main road and the entrances The layout of the two villas means that all homes are 100 per cent triple-aspect the council’s in-house regeneration company has a programme to deliver 50,000 new homes over the next 20 years with a proportion of those coming from small sites This new development will be managed and maintained by Reside maintenance and lettings company which was engaged as a consultant in the design process from the outset Careful consideration has been given to developing robust and low-maintenance buildings through their layout and material specification Archio submitted plans for the ‘suburban villas’ in January 2019 after being appointed by the council in 2018 Barking and Dagenham bought the 0.4ha synagogue site from the United Synagogue Trust in 2018 after the building became redundant in 2014 Tags The project prioritised reuse and upcycling using low-carbon and natural materials including… Working with local architecture studio dílna London and central Europe-based Chybik +… Harp & Harp has completed a seven-home scheme in Croydon Pollard Thomas Edwards has created a landmark… Welcome to bdonline.co.uk. This site uses cookies. Read our policy By 2021-03-01T11:38:00+00:00 Public realm contest at Britain’s biggest council estate was aimed at diverse practices Nimtim Architects’ winning proposal for Becontree Estate Nimtim Architects has won an RIBA competition to reimagine neglected areas of the Becontree Estate in east London The agenda-setting project was built 100 years ago as part of the garden city movement and became the largest municipal housing estate in the world with 26,000 homes and 100,000 people on four square miles of land in Barking & Dagenham The public realm contest is part of a series of centenary celebrations which will also see two exhibitions mounted at the RIBA’s headquarters on Portland Place this autumn the Resolve Collective and Studio Gil with Tisserin Engineers Archive shot of the Becontree Estate in Barking & Dagenham The RIBA invited emerging practices with black Asian or ethnic minority people in their senior leadership teams to enter as a reflection of the diverse communities living in Becontree They were asked to propose ways to make the estate’s corner plots more deliberate Nimtim Architects’ winning proposal for the Becontree Estate Becontree originally had generous green amenity spaces at the ends of terraces as part of the garden city aspirations but these corner plots have been neglected and underused in more recent years The winning proposal reorganises them as “civic squares” for people to meet play and grow things and to enhance the experience of walking through the estate Nimtim Architects’ winning public realm proposal for Becontree Estate Each square encourages new activities and performs new functions by inviting residents to take ownership of them The two free exhibitions at Portland Place will be of photographs by Kalpesh Lathigra and an installation by artist Verity-Jane Keefe that will consider the architectural economic and political decision-making that has shaped Becontree since its construction The installation will trace the lineage of the estate’s planning and decorative aesthetic through the lens of the RIBA’s archive the architectural social enterprise Poor Collective has been appointed to create a public realm commission with students from Mayesbrook Park School in Becontree The council is currently working to revive the estate which 100 years ago set the agenda for housing that put wellbeing and typological innovation at the heart of its design It was the originator of the cul-de-sac and most houses had both front and back gardens – unprecedented for public housing at the time ‘Deeply concerned’ president urges trainee architects to report all exploitative behaviour Design competition run by council’s in-house development company with Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust developers and modular builders form campaign for off-site homes for key workers The centre will contain buildings up to nine storeys in height Plans designed by Gensler for a £1bn cancer research and treatment centre in south London have been submitted for planning by developers Aviva Capital Partners and Socius Retrofit of 150 Aldersgate includes new terraces a reconfigured entrance and a public art installation Howells also scoops two awards for Birmingham office scheme and a cafe at a grade I-listed country house Site powered by Webvision Cloud Check if you already have access from your company or university With a MRW subscription you’ll get access to: will restore green infrastructure on the massive Becontree estate as it celebrates its centenary What’s the largest council estate in Britain and was once the largest social housing estate in the world Full marks to anyone who guessed Becontree the huge development that spreads over four square miles in Dagenham This year Becontree celebrates its 100th anniversary, a milestone marked by the Becontree Centenary programme, a partnership between London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Council, Create London and the RIBA. This includes a centenary Corner Plots commission won by nimtim architects. Over recent decades, Becontree has grappled with issues common to many long-established estates such as right to buy, the impact of car parking on front gardens and the maintenance of communal areas, as well as adjusting to significant changes to the overall resident demographic. ‘Becontree’s not a beautiful place. You can sense that it’s a place where people like to live, but it doesn’t feel celebrated or particularly valued. We felt there weren’t enough places for people to come together, and we sensed an opportunity to provide these,’ says nimtim’s Tim O’Callaghan. ‘Becontree needs these places that join the dots and become focal points for the community – there aren’t many points of interest,’ adds nimtim’s Nimi Attanayake. The practice’s proposal sits within a broader masterplan that it created for the whole estate. This additional framework is, says O’Callaghan, intended as a ‘gift’ to Becontree, with the hope that these wider ideas can be developed at a later point. In the masterplan, nimtim mapped routes where people could play, rest, meet and grow throughout the estate, identifying where these routes crossed as spaces for interventions. These were narrowed down to three sites of four corners. At each, the aim is to transform perceptions of these areas by removing the fences and no-play signs and creating new public spaces that can act, says O’Callaghan, as ‘the front room of the street’. Nimtim’s deliberately initially-loose proposal will coalesce in consultation with schools and community groups during the first half of this year – it is crucial that residents feel ownership of the changes, and the architect will be working with artist Katie Schwab on this engagement process. ‘Our work hasn’t really started in earnest yet. We’re at the start of the engagement so we don’t want to be too prescriptive as to what these places could become,’ says Attanayake, adding that an important part of the project will be listening. ‘People want to be heard, she says. Covid-restrictions permitting, the plan is to be able to create the initial interventions in the late summer. Nimtim hopes the corner projects will help ‘seed’ a wider series of changes, with the masterplan providing the framework for greater biodiversity and re-wilding. ‘The key issue is that the community takes ownership,’ says O’Callaghan. Further creative proposals to improve the public realm at Becontree have been invited as part of this year’s centenary celebrations. This includes Living Together, an art commission and living archive by former RIBAJ columnist Verity-Jane Keefe. The nimtim project is part of a series of RIBA artistic and architectural commissions, exhibition, events and learning programmes.  South London practice Nimtim Architects and east London-based textile artist Katie Schwab won the contest for the commission with their proposal Squaring the Corners – a Corner Plot Commission which commemorates the estate’s 100th anniversary will see 12 overlooked spaces across the four square mile estate in east London transformed into public squares Originally designed under lead architect George Topham Forrest the Becontree Estate in Dagenham was intended to rehouse people displaced by slum clearance in the East End The first homes were completed in 1921 and the last in 1935 The centenary commission will focus of the green spaces incorporated into the estate as part of the Garden City movement reinvigorating them for the some 75,000 residents that live on the estate “Becontree set the agenda for housing that put wellbeing and typological innovation at the heart of its design It was the originator of the cul-de-sac and most houses had both front and back gardens – unprecedented for public housing at the time,” says a statement from the RIBA which commissioned the project with arts organisation Create London and the support of London Borough of Barking & Dagenham and the National Lottery Heritage Fund The public realm commission is one of four projects marking the centenary of the Becontree Estate which includes exhibitions with the artist Verity-Jane Keefe and photographer Kalpesh Lahitgra at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place and a schools programme directed by the social enterprise POoR Collective at the Mayesbrook Park School in Dagenham The centenary of an east London housing estate billed as the largest ever when it was built after the First World War is to be marked with a series of events Becontree in Dagenham was built for more than 100,000 war veterans and workers from east London with the first 'home for heroes' completed in 1921 around 85,000 people live on the housing estate with two playgrounds and a range of street furniture made from rubble among events being planned to celebrate The estate was seen as something of a modern Utopia when it was created a good bathroom and gardens front and back several famous names have grown up on the estate including football managers Alf Ramsey and Terry Venables Pictured left is a corner of the estate in 1932 Left: Side elevation showing a garden from the estate which was entered into a competition Children crossing the road on the Becontree Estate The same spot looking very different in a photo taken on the street today A crescent typical of the Dagenham and Becontree London County Council Estate pictured in 1950 Residents were drawn by the allure of a spacious home with running water they were told that windows were to be cleaned once a week doorsteps must be scrubbed and children were banned from playing in communal gardens Any families that failed to meet these standards faced being thrown out of their homes London County Council also attempted to stop heavy drinking by refusing to build more than six pubs Parents also had to ensure their children were kept under control no washing could be hung from windows and front gardens had to be kept neat a third of the properties on the estate are let as social housing while three bedroom terraces are on the market for around £350,000 Demographics have also shifted with almost half of Becontree residents now coming from black or minority ethnic backgrounds A VE day street party on Albion Road on the Becontree Estate in 1945 Pictured right is the same street in a photo taken today The shops on Longbridge road in the Becontree estate Pictured right is the same spot today - complete with directions to a local Covid testing centre Some houses on the Becontree Estate in a photo taken in 1932 left with the same spot looking very different today (right) Part of the estate pictured left then and right today a good bathroom and gardens front and back The Becontree Forever project is now seeking to 'celebrate the radical past of the estate and reimagine its future' Residents will be involved in the creation of three new public squares which will be created at the end of terraces as places for people to meet and play There will also be commemorative plaques to celebrate past residents both those who were famous and those who were local heroes Irish artist Eva Rothschild will build a playground in Parsloes Park called the Becontree Pyramids The playground will open in July with a dance performance by teenage Becontree Estate residents working with Studio Wayne McGregor An out-of-use play area in the same park will be transformed into a second playground by British-Nigerian designer Yinka Ilori Reede Road on the Becontree estate in an undated photo Pictured right is the same street filled with cars and devoid of people amid the pandemic The estate was the largest in the world when it was constructed in 1912 Aerial view showing the construction of the Becontree Estate Pictured is the main shopping square on the estate today masks in view on the almost empty street amid the coronavirus pandemic The Becontree Forever project is now seeking to 'celebrate the radical past of the estate and reimagine its future' The design will be inspired by the park's original pink flamingos and he will also produce totems birdwatching and nesting structures and a basketball court Studio Morison will make street furniture from upcycled rubble from the estate The commissions are all produced and curated by Create London which led the east London cultural programme for the 2012 Olympics It is supported by the London borough of Barking and Dagenham using a levy paid by developers to mitigate the impact of their developments on the community 'It's really important that we shift that lens we incorporate the histories of other people.'  which was built by the London County Council (LCC) is nestled between Shoreditch High Street and Bethnal Green Road The Boundary Estate was constructed in Shoreditch in 1890 before it was formally opened to the public in 1900 which was built by the London County Council (LCC) and is nestled between Shoreditch High Street and Bethnal Green Road consists of multi-story brick tenements and Grade-II listed buildings The LCC pursued the development scheme during the 1890s in an effort to clear the slum houses on Old Nichol Street and build new Victorian red brick accommodation was able to construct 23 blocks to house just over 5,500 people in the area was constructed using the rubble from the slum an article about the Old Nichol slum in a 1863 edition of the Illustrated London News described it as 'reeking with disease and death' An excerpt read: 'It is but one painful and monotonous round of vice for the most ordinary observations of decency and cleanliness.' The dreadful conditions of the Old Nichol slum were also brought to the public's attention in A Child of the Jago by Arthur Morrison The comments below have not been moderated We are no longer accepting comments on this article The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group 200 Becontree Avenue by Archio has won the Editor’s Choice prize at the 2022 AJ Architecture Awards More on this topic Every year a project among the AJ Architecture Awards entries grabs your attention with its sheer joy and verve by 40 under 40 practice Archio: an affordable housing scheme simply brimming with generosity It is testament to what thoughtful architecture which puts people’s homes and happiness at its heart Archio has completed a new type of villa within the original estate as part of a major house-building programme in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Commissioned by the council’s in-house regeneration company Be First the design is the product of deep research into the characteristics of the estate delivering a gentle density of 19 affordable homes across two buildings on a landscaped corner The Garden City principles used to design the original 1920s Becontree estate became a touchstone for Archio’s design strategy The historic estate is predominantly single-family housing so the practice looked to other London County Council developments for clues on how to develop a denser scheme The practice drew on examples such as the Ossulston Estate in Camden which echo the quality of Becontree at a civic scale playfully riff on details of nearby houses such as semi-circular entrance arches and round windows exaggerated dormers and undulating eaves lines The building form helps minimise overlooking and overshading of neighbours and smooths the scale change from low-rise surrounding buildings to the denser A particularly positive move has been the relandscaping of an adjacent pedestrian cut-through into a play street linking to a local nursery The large windows are another standout feature – quirky In combination with generously proportioned rooms and underfloor heating powered by air source heat pumps The power of architects working in partnership with an open and ambitious client – with both parties willing to explore and grow – seems especially important here architect and client have delivered something different Location London RM8 • Completion March 2022 • Construction cost £5 million • Gross internal floor area 1,865m2 • Client Be First • Engineer Wilde • Services engineer Butler and Young SMCS • Main contractor United Living • Annual carbon emissions Not supplied Tags BDP’s College of Arts & Society at Coventry University has been named… Lewisham Council has given Turner Works planning permission for a mixed-use regeneration… Wandsworth Council has given Gehry Partners planning permission for two more residential… Southwark Council has approved tp bennett’s plans for a 25-storey student tower… Box Architects and Astral Pool have designed and delivered a much needed Olympic size pool at the Becontree Heath Leisure Centre The brief was to deliver a 50 metre pool as an extension to the pre-existing pool in Becontree Leisure Centre We started in early 2017 and it took two years to complete The design was made to match and fit with the existing leisure centre so it was cohesive with the extension being built on the existing centre and we used the same patterning London has only got a total of eight 50m pools and there are 8 million people in the city so there’s an obvious need for these facilities This new pool is building upon the 2012 Olympic legacy; getting people swimming and trying to bring forward the next generation of medallists in the UK.” the new swimming pool was opened by Olympic Champion Rebecca Adlington fellow Olympic medallists Joanne Jackson and Steve Parry and Commonwealth champion James Goddard and Olympians Grant Turner and Craig Figes Because of the innovative design and build of the pool it is a first for the area as the modular format is steel lined and created above ground level making installation faster and more cost-effective The new pool will also provide more spaces on Everyone Active’s swimming lesson programme while swimming clubs will also be able to train in the longer pool which manages Becontree Heath Leisure Centre in partnership with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham is working with Total Swimming to expand the swimming provision to local residents and with the new pool they will be able to do that Much work went into delivering this 50 metre pool in aid of the community using it and the concept of giving young swimmers a facility where they can chase and achieve higher sporting goals Dyfed Thompson Smith of AstralPool UK Ltd explains their involvement in the design supply and installation of the first 50m “SKYPOOL COMMERCIAL POOL” modular solution alongside associated filtration and water treatment systems: “AstralPool UK Ltd have worked in partnership with Total Swimming for over 12 years and have delivered many other “SKYPOOL” pool solutions for both temporary and permanent facilities AstralPool UK Ltd were engaged from the outset by their client Total Swimming to offer specialist design input and specifications services for the swimming pool package and worked alongside all relevant engineering disciplines as part of the overall design team This ensured that the employers’ expectations and requirements were fully co-ordinated and met The SKYPOOL COMMERCIAL POOL offers a solution based on panel pools developed by AstralPool for public pools SKYPOOL COMMERCIAL POOLS are composed of a hot galvanised steel structure that facilitates the construction of all sizes of above or in ground pools in very short periods of time We’d like to hear from people who have lived on the Becontree estate about their memories and experiences on its 100th anniversary The Becontree estate in the East London borough of Barking and Dagenham was a landmark developing in public housing development The first homes in the social housing estate were built in 1921 and were described as the world’s largest council estate the Guardian is keen to speak to current and former residents about their memories of the area You can get in touch by filling in the form below Your responses are secure as the form is encrypted and only the Guardian has access to your contributions One of our journalists will be in contact before we publish If you’re having trouble using the form, click here. Read terms of service here Looking to redesign 12 neglected and underused corner plots across the estate the project reimagines these areas as new civic squares in East London Becontree, the largest council estate in Britain, was built 100 years ago. Conceived part of the Garden City movement, it originally had generous green amenity spaces at the ends of terraces; the ‘corner plots’. These large front and back gardens, parks, and undefined green amenity spaces were leftover from dividing up farmland into plots for homes. Courtesy of nimtim architectsNimtim architects with artist Katie Schwab proposed to “reorganize Becontree’s neglected corner plots as new civic squares for people to meet grow and play – and to enhance the experience of walking through the estate invites residents to take ownership of the squares other shortlisted practices and proposals were: You'll now receive updates based on what you follow Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors If you have done all of this and still can't find the email