Angel Building, London

Turning a 1980’s office into a contemporary, sustainable workspace

The Angel building was once a forgotten 1980’s building on the intersection of St John’s Street and Pentonville Road, known as ‘The Angel Centre’ it was occupied by BT until 2006.

The building had many problems making it unattractive to new tenants, including an inefficient layout and a deteriorating fabric.

Project details

Client: Derwent, London
Architect: AHMM, Veretec
Structural Engineers: Adams Kara Taylor
M&E Engineers: Norman Disney & Young
Project Manager: Buro Four
Acoustic Consultant: Sandy Brown Associates

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50,000 sq ft

office space

23,000 sq ft

rooftop terraces

7,400

tonnes of embodied carbon saved

1980’s

office transformation

Reusing the existing structure to increase and enhance the space

Derwent London and AHMM looked at several options before deciding that the building could be reused due to the good floor to ceiling heights of the in-situ frame and the potential to obtain additional space by utilising the open central courtyard to increase floor area. The existing concrete frame was extended vertically and horizontally, then wrapped in a highly-efficient glazed skin. In the centre of the building the inner courtyard was sealed to create a full-height atrium that goes through all five floors and floods the centre of the office floor plates with light.

Video of Angel

Reducing energy usage and carbon

Reducing energy consumption through passive building design, energy efficient system design and renewable energy technologies, was a key driver of the scheme. This led to an approximate carbon saving of 20% and a BREEAM Excellent rating. One of the biggest savings came from minimising embodied energy in the building’s structure, by reusing the existing frame. This enabled Derwent to save 7,400 tons of embodied Carbon (the equivalent to running the entire new building for 13 years).

An award winning contemporary space

Today the refurbished Angel building provides 50,000 sq ft (NIA) of office space, a full height atrium, a café, and 23,000 sq ft of rooftop terraces. There are also retail units on the ground floor. The refurbished building has won awards from RIBA London, the British Council for Offices and New London Architecture, as well as being shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2011.