A new Overground for Network Rail which forms a new cycle and pedestrian connection beneath the railway as well as a new station, with strong creative references to the Lea River and its industries.

The new station at Hackney Wick, jointly commissioned by Network Rail and the LLDC, forms the cornerstone of regeneration in the centre of the Wick by re-connecting communities on either side of the railway though a new cycle and pedestrian street under the rail embankment, as well as improving access to London's rail and bus services. The deliberately place-specific design was developed in collaboration with artist Wendy Hardie and draws heavily on the silty landscape of the Lee River. The materials palette is deliberately spartan using in-situ concrete, weathering steel and glass to reinforce the area’s gritty industrial character. The project has won RIBA National, NLA, Civic Trust, World Architecture News and ICE London Awards, it was shortlisted for the NLA Mayor of London Prize in 2019 and was named Outright Winner in the 2019 Concrete Society Awards

Hackney Wick Station is a multiple award winning project for good reason. The station’s sense of place incorporates bespoke elements drawing inspiration from the station’s contextual setting of the River Lee. The local community, primarily local creatives, really understand this place and its relationship to this part of London. The detailed story and the design language was very deliberate; the shuttering, the willows grown out of the soil, the reference to chemical induces provide several points of reference that speak to different audiences. Several layers of meaning are embedded in the design , and chemists, musicians, artists, creatives can all find references that they can relate to.
The materiality is raw and gritty. The design ethos is about extending the character of Lea valley; sheet piling references the banks of the River Lea and the surfaces are being silty and gnarly with exposed aggregate concrete surfaces reflecting the tow path. The Underpass turns the water on its side and creates a flickering watery light quality with the use of glass. The concrete frieze references the chemical industries, once central to the area and remembers the industrial past to prevent it from being swept away. As a client we embraced the need for the station to be tough, chunky, raw and not too precious.

The close collaboration of the design team, architect, engineer and artist, together with an engaged supportive client team was central to the integrity and success of the design. The risks of delivering a station and public realm with materials and design proposals that had never been done before required faith and backing from the sponsor.