Haworth Tompkins has been chosen by Reading Council as the lead architect on their £13.7 million Hexagon Theatre project. The revitalisation, which sees the creation of a flexible new space for performances and community use, forms the first phase of a longer-term regeneration of the 1970s-built Hexagon. HT will work in partnership with a multi-disciplinary design team, including Charcoalblue as Theatre and Acoustic Consultants, JCLA as Landscape Architects, Momentum as Structural Engineers and Skelly and Couch as Service Engineers. Joining the team is Equals Consulting as Project Managers. All proposals focus on improved sustainability as part of the Council’s commitment to working towards a net-zero carbon Reading by 2030. Read the full release.
Picture shows: Front row L to R: James Shepperd, Equals Consulting – Project Director; Donna Pentelow, Reading's Assistant Director of Culture; Lucy Picardo, Haworth Tompkins – Director; Sarah Cox, Reading Arts and Venues Manager. Back row L to R: Charity Gordon, Programme Manager The Hexagon; Fiona Marrison, Theatre Manager The Hexagon; Technical Manager Reading Arts; John Luther, Artistic Director South Street; Jason McKay, Haworth Tompkins – Associate; Rose Burgoyne, Haworth Tompkins architect; Joe Green, Equals consulting Project Manager.
Work has started on site for the new Studio Theatre at the Hexagon, Reading.
HT Associate Directors Hugo Braddick & Ken Okonkwo have been selected as Expert Assessors for the 2025 NLA Awards, in the Industrial & Logistics and Neighbourhoods & Areas cateogries. They, alongside their fellow assessors have been busy for the past couple of weeks reviewing the entries which will be presented to the shortlist jury who will select the final winners, commendations and special prizes, to be announced at the awards ceremony later this year. Run by New London Architecture with support from the Mayor of London, the Awards celebrate the people, places and projects shaping a more equitable, sustainable and prosperous London.
Haworth Tompkins has been shortlisted in three categories at this year's Building Design Architect of the Year Awards. The awards recognise architects for their commitment to providing a high-quality work environment and a consistent body of work rather than one-off projects. We're in the running for three categories; Best Architect Employer, Refurbishment & Reinvention and Higher Education for projects including Pembroke College, The Warburg Institute, Trinity Hall Masterplan, American Repertory Theater, King’s Cross Church and Malmö Stadsteater.
Haworth Tompkins is working with lead architects and masterplanners Maccreanor Lavington alongside Sergison Bates, Architecture Doing Place and East on the regeneration of the Aylesbury Estate in Southwark. The vast 28.5 hectare estate, one of Europe's largest, is being regenerated over a 30-year programme, providing 3500 new homes, of which over 50% will be affordable and prioritised for existing and former Aylesbury Estate residents.
Our appointment, through the Notting Hill Genesis Framework, delivers over 200 homes as part of Phase 2B, alongside a new neighbourhood park, with play areas, landscaping, and spaces for community use. Our plot includes a 25 Storey tower designed to maximise dual aspect homes.
Cllr Helen Dennis, Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development, said: “I’m delighted to see these new high-quality, safe, and warm homes given the green light to go ahead on the Aylesbury Estate. It is vital that the estate renewal continues to progress, delivering affordable, decent housing and green spaces for Southwark residents, including existing Aylesbury residents and those on our housing waiting list."
Haworth Tompkins has been appointed by LDA Design to join the team shaping the new St George’s Gateway Framework – a major initiative to reimagine one of Liverpool’s most significant cultural and civic quarters. The project is being delivered in collaboration with Liverpool City Council, Liverpool John Moores University, and National Museums Liverpool, alongside a multidisciplinary team including WSP, Pegasus Group, Hatch, PLACED, and AspinallVerdi.
The framework will guide future development and investment across this vital city centre area, maximising public benefit and enhancing Liverpool’s unique cultural and heritage assets. It builds on recent transformational projects, such as the removal of the Churchill Way Flyovers, and seeks to place high-quality placemaking at the heart of the city’s future growth.
Lucy Picardo, Director at Haworth Tompkins, said: 'We’re delighted to be working with LDA Design and the wider team on such a significant piece of city-making. Liverpool holds a special place for us through our work on the Everyman Theatre, and we’re excited to bring our experience in cultural and heritage-led regeneration to this project. St George’s Gateway is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape a truly inclusive and vibrant civic space.'
Following our winning competition submission in summer 2024, Haworth Tompkins has been working closely with London Museum Docklands to explore opportunities at its site on West India Quay in Canary Wharf. London Museum Docklands is housed within a Grade 1 listed Georgian warehouse and is home to the Port & River collection, telling the long history of the capital as a port through stories of trade, enslavement and migration.
“We are thrilled to have been awarded this opportunity. It’s been a pleasure to work together with the team at London Museum Docklands over the last 6 months.” Lucy Picardo - Director, Haworth Tompkins.
Our design of the @sohoplace auditorium is embedded at the heart of the building and is the first new build West End theatre for 50 years. Responding to impresario Nica Burns’ vision for a truly adaptable, intimate 600 seat West End auditorium, Haworth Tompkins, Charcoalblue, Arup and TAIT designed an intense, sumptuous room with multiple possibilities for artists and audiences to explore.
The judges commented that 'one of the project’s highlights is the studio theatre auditorium space designed by Haworth Tompkins and managed by Nica Burns. This intimate space is protected from the cacophony of exhaust air from a Crossrail energy plant and yet the noise reduction measures mean that it is quieter than many of the capital’s grander theatres.
The exquisitely proportioned volume provides accessibility for small productions that would otherwise struggle to secure central London venues. Lobbies and circulation spaces wrap the auditorium box and break with theatre tradition through glass facades that intersect with chrome-clad columns to emit and reflect the theatre of movement into the surrounding streets.
Haworth Tompkins was delighted to attend an opening event last weekend in celebration of Pembroke College’s transformative Mill Lane development, marking the culmination of a nine-year journey in collaboration with the College. As architects for this significant project, we are incredibly proud to have led the design and to have played a part in shaping the College’s diverse new facilities. It was fantastic to see the landscaping in bloom and the HT designed spaces being used for performances, exhibitions and talks, demonstrating the flexibility and versatility of the new and refurbished spaces.
The event brought together the Dolby family, alumni, and supporters to celebrate this milestone. The day began with a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by Dagmar Dolby, her sons Dave and Tom, and other family members, before guests explored the new spaces, including the stunning Dolby Court. Throughout the day, the College also hosted a series of conversations in the new Auditorium, compered by Anna Lapwood and Alex Macqueen.
Pembroke Mill Lane is the most significant expansion of the College since the fourteenth century, providing a range of public and collegiate spaces within new and existing buildings on a complex site in the historic city centre. The development includes enhanced teaching, residential, administrative, and communal facilities, arranged around new gardens and courtyards. Publicly accessible elements include a gatehouse, exhibition space, foyer, and a flexible auditorium within a Grade II-listed former church, supporting music performance, lectures, and events.
This project, years in the making, is a true reflection of the College's commitment to both academic excellence and a forward-looking, inclusive vision. We are honoured to have contributed to such a transformational development, which will serve the College and its community for generations to come.
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