ThreeSixty
2021–22
Assemble worked with Barking Enterprise Centre and Create London to establish THREESIXTY, an affordable workspace with a social mission.
Situated on the ground floor of a new residential tower in Barking Town Centre, THREESIXTY supports local people and businesses through a holistic approach with a range of offers, from desk and event space, through to business support, skills training and adult education programmes.
The existing arrangement is unusual, with the undulous façade and central shear walls deriving from the design logic of the residential block above.
For THREESIXTY we have introduced a minimal number of new elements to transform this commercial unit in to a series of spaces which are practical and robust, forming the backdrop for a diversity of activity.
Simple partition walls create a variety of rooms, from shared workspace through to private office, event space and the ‘Library of Things’.
An economical and limited material palette is used playfully: recycled raised access flooring – salvaged from previous office strip outs – is left exposed as the floor finish; curtains of varying weights can be drawn to divide the space visually and acoustically; and linoleum topped tables are curved around the perimeter, to make the most of the available space.