FCBS won the competition to masterplan the Camley Street regeneration project in 2020, originally partnering with Architecture 00 and Studio Woodroffe Papa. At the time, the scheme had an estimated budget of £136 million.
It is understood rival teams competing for the job included Arup with Alison Brooks Architects; Haworth Tompkins with Feilden Fowles, Níall McLaughlin Architects and Metropolitan Workshop; Maccreanor Lavington; and Sheppard Robson with dRMM.
Since then, the scheme has been through a five-year consultation with the local community during which time the proposed number of homes has increased from 350 to 401.
Late last year, project backers Ballymore and Lateral, which are working in partnership with landowner Camden Council, brought in Morris + Company to develop detailed designs for one of the plots.
A planning application has now been lodged with the council. This follows an application for prior approval for the demolition of the existing light industrial buildings across the sites, which cover a total area of 1.45ha.
The scheme would transform two plots at 120-136 Camley Street (site A – FCBS) and a nearby site at 3-30 Cedar Way (site B – Morris+Company) to create a neighbourhood with new homes, commercial workplaces, a technology hub, pedestrian and cycle routes, and public green spaces.
Camden Council plans to offer half of the 401 new homes at ‘genuinely affordable’ levels. These will range from one to four-bedroom flats, which it says are ‘desperately needed in the borough’.
FCBS will deliver the 119 affordable homes, while Morris+Company is behind two residential buildings housing units for private and intermediate rent, plus a separate technology hub hosting life science and manufacturing workspaces.
The sites sit between the new neighbourhood at King’s Cross and the council’s flagship development at Agar Grove.
A new ‘green’ pedestrian route would link Camden Town to the West End via the site, and buildings would feature rooftop gardens and terraces to promote biodiversity.
Camden Council partnered up with developer Ballymore and investment firm Lateral on the project, following a 2023 call for £500 million of investment.
Camley site building location plan
Camden cabinet member for new homes and community investment Nasrine Djemai said: ‘These proposals will also support local growth and provide more than 1,000 job and training opportunities that will directly benefit our residents.
‘For almost five years, we’ve been engaging with local communities and businesses to create a shared vision for Camley Street.’
FCBS partner Chris Allen described the scheme as a ‘socially and environmentally resilient neighbourhood’ and emphasised the creation of an enhanced public realm in Camley Street containing new tree planting and several outdoor communal spaces.
Morris+Company founder Joe Morris said his practice’s contribution ‘feeds directly into the masterplan vision’ while prioritising ‘openness, adaptability and sustainability, supporting a new ecosystem of inclusion and shared growth at the heart of Camden.’
He added: ‘These are not simply spaces for living and working, but places designed to open up access, encourage collaboration and blur boundaries between learning, making and community.’
The planning application is expected to be determined in early 2026. Work to ready the site for development will also begin in the new year.
Project Data:
Client Camden Council CIP/Ballymore/Lateral
Architect Feilden Cleggg Bradley Studios (masterplan and site A), Morris+Company (site B)
Landscape architect Spacehub
Planning consultant Turley
Street life strategy RCKa
Energy and sustainability Hoare Lea
Structural engineer Walsh Assocaites
MEP Couch Perry & Wilkes
Cost consultant Aecom (site A), Gardiner & Theobald (site B)
Stakeholder engagement Make Good
Fire engineer Ashton Fire
Transport Consultant Velocity
Life science architect Fairhurst
Daylight and sunlight DPR
Social impact Hatch
Heritage and townscape Montagu Evans
Access consultant Peter Connell
Wind engineer RWDI
Environmental statement Temple
Construction logistics A Consulting