Designing for heritage: Making Greenwich’s streets safer and more welcoming

09 July 2026

Greenwich Town Centre is unlike almost anywhere else in London. Set within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site, it carries an extraordinary weight of history alongside the everyday demands of a busy, working town centre. We are leading public realm design and engagement for the Greenwich Town Centre Liveable Neighbourhood Scheme, commissioned by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, and following on from our prior feasibility design development in 2021.

Working alongside lead consultant and transport engineers Steer, heritage specialists Authentic Futures and horticulturalist Errol Reuben Fernandes, we are helping to create streets that genuinely prioritise walking, cycling and public life. The challenge goes beyond just movement or infrastructure, it needs carefully considered design to celebrate and strengthen a place of genuine international significance.

Our role centres on public realm design and engagement. In practice, this means unlocking space for walking and cycling whilst protecting the function of the covered market, safeguarding the route of the London marathon and supporting the efficient functioning of an important vehicular and public transport routes. We will develop a coordinated material palette that maximises material reuse, creating a landscape and wayfinding strategy that responds meaningfully to the historic setting. Every decision sits within the context of the UNESCO World Heritage Site designation, which requires a considered and precise approach to design.

“Greenwich Town Centre is one of London’s most historic and internationally recognised destinations, but the current layout can feel hostile to anyone on foot thanks to the heavy traffic and narrow pavements. We need a town centre that people want to spent time in, not one they feel rushed through. The aim to pedestrianise much of the town centre around the iconic market will do just that, not only making it safer to walk, wheel or cycle in, but unlocking opportunities for local businesses, and making it a nicer place for visitors and residents alike.”

Councillor Calum O’Byrne Mulligan, Cabinet Member for Transport, Climate Change, Waste and Streets

Alongside developing design proposals, we are leading inclusive engagement with residents, market traders and local community groups. Greenwich Town Centre is a place people live, work and trade in daily, and their knowledge of how the streets function, where the pressures are, and what matters most has been central to shaping the proposals. The engagement will ensure that the scheme reflects genuine need and builds lasting local support.

The team are now progressing through Transport for London's processes that bring rigour and scrutiny to the emerging designs. The proposals being developed through this stage prioritise safer streets, improved accessibility and a public realm that encourages people to move through and spend time in the town centre on foot and by bike. The goal is a town centre that feels welcoming, legible and generous, one where the quality of the everyday environment does justice to the extraordinary heritage that surrounds it.

“Greenwich Town Centre can be so much more. There is an amazing opportunity to reveal the regency and medieval streets to create places to dwell, walk and cycle through and to host city life for the town’s residents, businesses and thousands of visitors.”

Tom Fox, Senior Associate