Design team announced for Walworth Town Hall and Newington Library

Southwark Council has chosen the designers and creative talents that will deliver the planned rebuilds of Walworth Town Hall and Newington Library in Elephant and Castle.

For both projects, the architect will be Avanti, with Faithful+Gould as lead consultants. The announcement will be welcome news for local residents, as the original listed buildings were completely gutted by a major fire in March 2013.

Mark Williams, the council’s cabinet member for regeneration, planning and transport, said: "Our vision for Walworth Town Hall and Newington Library is to offer local residents a new, top quality space to act as a community hub for people to enjoy and use at the heart of Elephant and Castle.

"We want to bring people together and this project will play a key role in building strong communities and civic pride in this historic neighbourhood. I believe Faithful+Gould, with Avanti’s designs, are the best team to take this forward and I look forward to seeing what their final designs will be."

A full range of services will be on offer at the new facilities, including space for civic events, entertainment performances, exhibitions and a registry office with the capacity for wedding receptions. The library will also have a dedicated display space for the Cuming collection and other important local artifacts from the Southwark collection, along with upgraded facilities for its other services.

The choice of architect was made after three firms were invited to submit rough designs to the critical eyes of local residents, as well as council officials. Avanti’s vision proved the most popular, but the final designs will not be confirmed until a full consultation process has taken place.

Jane Foulkes, associate director of Faithful+Gould, said the company was “delighted to be part of this interesting project, bringing these listed buildings back to life, and creating a community hub at the heart of Walworth as part of the surrounding regeneration”.

Amir Ramezani from Avanti Architects was similarly pleased, and said: "We are delighted to be appointed to transform Walworth Town Hall into a new revitalised cultural venue.”

Published 11th March, 2015

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