Collingbourne Avenue

A neighbourhood shaped around everyday life

Collingbourne Avenue is a residential development in Birmingham designed around the relationship between homes, streets and shared landscape.

The proposal seeks to create a recognisable neighbourhood rather than a collection of isolated house types. Buildings define clear streets and overlooked communal spaces, helping the development feel connected, legible and welcoming.

The challenge was to deliver twelve new homes while creating a development with a clear sense of place. The proposal needed to balance the efficient use of the site with the privacy, outlook and everyday needs of future residents.

Rather than treating the landscape as space left between buildings, the design uses it to organise the neighbourhood. Homes, routes and shared green space are brought together to create a setting that feels coherent, overlooked and connected.

The homes are arranged in two clear terraces that address the shared green space and establish a strong edge to the neighbourhood. Their position provides natural overlooking while keeping access and parking close to each home.

A restrained palette of red brick, dark roof tiles, repeated gables and simple entrance canopies gives the development a coherent architectural identity. Variation is created through rhythm, landscape and clearly defined thresholds rather than unnecessary formal gestures.

Photovoltaic panels are integrated into the roof as part of the overall composition, supporting reduced operational energy demand without competing with the architectural form.