St Matthews Keyworker Homes

Awards

2008 Sustainable Housing Awards

2006 Sustainability Awards – Low energy building of the year

This block of 12 flats for keyworkers is part of the larger regeneration of 120 homes at St Matthew’s Estate in Brixton. The proposals received Housing Corporation funding in 2002, with the keyworker block attracting a ‘challenge’ fund, which requires a high level of innovation. This innovation focuses on the environmental performance of the building and the extent to which readily available technologies can be used economically within the affordable housing sector in the UK.

The block is designed to require zero space heating, and to approach a carbon neutral performance level. This is achieved through orientation, detailed design and specification. In principle this is a ‘massive’ building with a highly insulation and dense envelope to protect against the external weather fluctuations. The orientation is north south, with all living rooms facing south and having large windows and direct access to south facing winter gardens and balconies. All windows are triple glazed with small north facing windows. The external wall incorporates brick and block construction and a 300mm insulated cavity. All floor plates including the roof are concrete with no internal finish for effective thermal banking. Externally, the roof will be fitted with solar panels to supplement water heating for the flats provided by a wood pellet burning stove using non-fossil renewable fuel.

​With a modest additional PV system planned as a longer term upgrade option – The design should easily meet the long term government target of a 60 % carbon reduction from mid 1990 levels by 2050.