Viaduct Restoration & Additions

The Viaduct project comprises three key components:
• Restoration of the Victorian railway viaduct, including the creation of a roof garden
• Reinstatement of the Victorian façade at 12a Fairchild Place
• Addition of a rooftop kiosk serving the new garden space

Originally constructed in 1865 as part of the North London Railway, this viaduct is one of only two surviving sections that once carried trains to Broad Street Station—now the site of the Broadgate development, following the station’s closure in the 1980s.

Identified by the planning heritage as Other non-designated Heritage Assets, and 12a Fair Child as Building of Townscape Merit, the viaduct holds significant historical value. Throughout the project, the design team collaborated closely with conservation officers from the London Borough of Hackney to ensure sensitive restoration and integration of all elements—from brickwork cleaning methods to the precise lime mortar mix for repointing. The viaduct’s arches will be repurposed for retail use, while the formerly overgrown roof has been transformed into a landscaped garden with seating and play areas.

A newly constructed rooftop kiosk provides a café or retail amenity for visitors to the garden. Its profile responds to the surrounding roofscape, while its zinc standing seam cladding references the industrial character and heritage of the original viaduct structure below.

12a Fairchild Place, a Victorian annex to the viaduct, historically served as a workshop, warehouse, or shop. A 1970s photograph shows the building as a modest structure with banded detailing and rectangular window frames. Over time, the façade underwent multiple alterations, including the change to Gothic arch windows and brightly painted finishes. Due to the deteriorated condition of the original load-bearing faience blocks, they could not be reused. In close review with the conservation officer, the restoration approach was carefully developed—addressing every detail from the structural support system behind the façade to the precise profiles of the window frames. Overpaints on the existing faience were removed to study the original colour schemes, and extensive research into neighbouring buildings from the same period informed the reinstatement. The façade has been faithfully reconstructed using precisely replicated faience blocks supported by modern structural elements, faithfully restoring the building’s original Victorian character.

The project is delivered while working at Perkins & Will.