The Hawksmoor Church of St Luke's

The Grade 1 listed St Luke’s Church in EC1 was declared unsafe in 1959 and remained derelict and un-used for years. But following a major refurbishment, the building is now a vibrant, accessible and sustainable venue, home to the London Symphony Orchestra’s music education programme, LSO Discovery.

Islington Council was appointed as the Building Control body for the venue and worked closely with the architects from the outset. We set up a local authority team – bringing together the Council’s access, conservation, building control and licensing officers.

The Council team worked closely with the architects to meet an ambitious brief and address key priorities including building acoustics, high standards of accessibility, fire safety and the flow of people around the building. There were also some significant constraints because of the building’s conservation needs. The Council’s surveyors worked with the client to ensure the building had suitable access and safety features which remained sympathetic and in keeping with the design requirements and heritage of the building.

Anne Basley, Facilities Manager at LSO St Luke’s said:

“Heritage projects like this one can be challenging and positive working relationships are essential to their success. The Council team were supportive and proactive in coming up with practical and flexible solutions to support our vision, while keeping standards for access and safety high.”

LSO St Luke’s is now a much-loved venue, which hosts many concerts as well as workshops and activities for local organisations and schools.

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