A study for the form of housing growth in outer east London. The A1306 between Rainham and Beam Park is typical of the part-suburban part-industrial road corridors of outer London which could accommodate a significant quantity of the housing growth that is needed. The challenge is to develop at sustainable residential densities, well supported by transport infrastructure while protecting employment space and reducing car dependency.

This study builds on previous masterplans for this strip to explore a prototype adaptable to different sites. It provides larger scale apartment blocks with non-residential, mainly workspace, ground floor uses on the main road with lower rise town houses in courtyard clusters behind, relating to the massing of the existing fabric adjacent. The apartment blocks are varied in height in response to their location, getting taller, for example, at the approach to a new station. The spaces between the blocks are conceived as small piazzas connecting through to the townhouse clusters. These spaces together with the commercial uses, and overlooking by inset balconies of the apartments all contribute to the vitality and animation of the public realm.