UK: Folk Co-Living has won a RIBA award for its Folk Sunday Mills scheme in Earlsfield, south-west London.
Designed by Assael Architecture, Folk Sunday Mills draws on the industrial history of the River Wandle to revive and open up the once dormant site. The scheme includes 315 coliving rooms and a community hub for residents and the public.
The RIBA Awards judges said: “This 315-apartment development in the suburb of Earlsfield moves the conversation forward on how to produce wonderful places to live and work, in a diverse world of different circumstances. Its innovative shared-living model provides comfortable, if modest, private living spaces, while granting access to incredible facilities for the residents, from ‘Masterchef’ style kitchens to a range of lounge spaces and very high-quality shared workspace. Inside and out, the form and materiality of the architecture sensitively reference the riverside setting’s industrial past. The architect has ingeniously resolved the site’s many constraints and efficiently composed living areas with daylit corridors, while creating the many and varied generous facilities throughout. The result is an elegant example of how the needs for density, sustainability and social value can all be delivered at once.”
With three buildings across London, Folk’s mission is “to set a new standard for renting”. Properties include a gym, cinema, co-working space membership, superfast Wi-Fi and council tax as part of the monthly rent.
