Location: West London

Richmond Way Nursery provides a private creche and nursery on a tight urban backlands site. A private residents' garden for neighbouring properties and new landscaped access routes are also incorporated into the project. Where possible, trees have been preserved or replaced. A series of glazed doors allow the nursery and creche to be opened up on one side to terraces and external teaching and play spaces which remain private from the adjacent gardens. The nursery is planned around a 'Street' with play rooms on one side and support spaces on the other. Sliding folding doors allow children to spill into the Street for large group activities; and double doors between play rooms provide grouping flexibility. Each play room has a 'garden room' for wet play, a covered outside space, and a garden which leads to shared play spaces. An intensive green roof and careful landscaping keeps the building form unobtrusive and replaces the habitat of the existing site, whilst also providing informal security for the local residents.