Located on a prominent site next to two well-known civic icons, Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena, Brent Civic Centre provided an opportunity to not only streamline the Council’s civic and administrative activities under one roof but to create a significant new community space community space and a hub for the Borough’s diverse and multi-cultural residents to come together.

Our competition-winning design helped the Council realise its ‘One Council’ vision and featured extensive consultation with a complex matrix of stakeholders and wider community. The building’s spaces are arranged around a soaring, naturally-lit foyer and atrium which houses a large staircase and public amphitheatre that hosts a lively programme of arts and cultural events. 

A circular drum clad in timber fins creates a strong visual focus in the space and houses a multi-purpose community hall, library, one-stop shop and civic chamber. Behind this, glazed wings of open-plan, flexible office accommodation house over 2000 staff and provide a future-proofed solution to the diverse community’s administrative needs. The building also includes space for retail outlets and a landscaped garden to help it connect with the surrounding Wembley Regeneration Area.

The project features a 33% reduction in carbon emissions thanks to a combination of solar shading, natural ventilation, high-performance façade, green roofs and combined cooling, heating and power which utilises waste fish oil. The project was awarded a BREEAM Outstanding, the first project in its category to have achieved this and the then most sustainable local authority building to be completed in the UK.