Appleby Blue Almshouse is a landmark project responding to the urgent need for high-quality, affordable housing for older people in London. Developed by United St Saviour’s Charity, it builds on a 500-year legacy by creating a contemporary almshouse that promotes independence, wellbeing, and community for older residents in Southwark.

Located on a constrained brownfield site in Bermondsey, the development sits within a complex urban setting. From the outset, architects, landscape architects, and care specialists worked together to ensure the external environment was integral to the project’s health, social, and spatial goals. Resident feedback from the nearby Hopton’s Almshouses shaped the landscape’s hierarchy, layout, and sensory qualities.

Southwark has one of the highest concentrations of social housing in London, yet few affordable, age-appropriate options. Many older residents face isolation, mobility challenges, and health disparities. Appleby Blue provides 57 purpose-built homes embedded within a generous, layered landscape that balances privacy, connection, and care.

The Vision
The design champions access to daylight, fresh air, and greenery—proven to enhance physical and mental health. The landscape comprises a central courtyard, productive rooftop gardens, accessible walkways, and public-facing edges. Each space is crafted to support wellbeing, foster routine, and encourage interaction.

Design objectives:
• Create safe, stimulating outdoor spaces for activity and rest
• Provide varied therapeutic and social settings to combat loneliness
• Enhance everyday contact with nature
• Encourage intergenerational and public interaction
Benches, paths, textures, thresholds, and planting were designed with older users in mind—ensuring comfort, clarity, and sensory richness. The result is a living landscape that is not simply decorative, but functional, meaningful, and uplifting.

Landscape and architecture were developed in tandem to ensure seamless transitions between inside and out. The Garden Court, with ginkgo trees, woodland planting, and a gentle rill, forms a calm, biophilic heart. At roof level, a series of garden rooms includes:
• A Dining Garden for communal meals
• Growing Gardens with raised beds
• A Foraging Garden with fruit trees and shaded planting
• Sunrise and Sunset Lounges for reflection
• A future Bee Hive Terrace for urban biodiversity
These spaces reflect a consistent design language—balancing sociability with sanctuary. Spatial layering ensures legible, inclusive zones in a compact footprint.

Design Themes and Principles
The landscape is shaped by clear principles:
• Convivial Landscapes: Encourage impromptu connection
• Identity & Unity: A strong visual language reinforces a sense of place
• Contact with Nature: Planting and habitats are integrated throughout
• Memories of the British Garden: Seasonal charm and familiarity
• Creative Water Systems: Rain gardens and harvesting support irrigation and resilience
• Universally Accessible: Designed for clarity, comfort, and mobility
• Design Quality: Robust, low-maintenance materials and detailing
• Sustainability: Future-proofed for biodiversity and climate adaptation
• Value vs Aspiration: Aligned with realistic budgets and long-term care

Performance and Stewardship
Sustainability was embedded from the outset:
• Climate Resilience: Trees and vertical planting reduce heat and purify air
• Water Management: Permeable surfacing and rain gardens reduce runoff
• Biodiversity: Pollinator-friendly planting and green roofs boost urban ecology
• Carbon Awareness: Reused materials and compact layout minimise emissions

Community engagement shaped the process at every stage. Residents were involved in shaping priorities for access, comfort, and use. The landscape is now stewarded with local gardening groups and researchers exploring how shared food growing and communal activity can support ageing well.
Appleby Blue has received national recognition:
• BALI National Landscape Award 2024 – Winner
• Pineapples Award 2025 – Healthy Homes Winner

Live Longer, Live Better
This is not landscape as ornament—it is infrastructure for dignity, resilience, and social value. Every square metre is activated with purpose and care. The result is a richly layered, universally accessible environment that connects people to nature, place, and one another—setting a new benchmark for the future of housing and ageing in cities.

• Other landscape architecture offices involved in the design of the landscape:
Grant Associates

• Architecture offices involved in the design:
Witherford Watson Mann

• Other credits:
Client: United St Saviour’s Charity
Developer: JTRE
Structural Engineers: Price & Pringer / James Consulting engineers
Services Engineers: Skelly & Couch / AWA Consultants
Fire Consultants: The Fire Surgery
Planning Consultant: DP9
Acoustic Consultant: Ramboll associates / Hann Tucker
Main contractor: JTRE London

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