The original Angel Court was one of the last tall buildings to be built in the City of London during the 1970s prior to the introduction of the Bank Conservation area. Undergoing dramatic redevelopment from 2014, the building was transformed into a contemporary urban office, using inventive construction methods to balance the ambitions of the project with the significant planning restrictions of the site.

Following the introduction of the Bank Conservation area, any new developments in the vicinity were restricted to significantly lower elevation and the demolition of pre-existing buildings would result in the loss of any historical planning consent for the site. After exploring options for new-build and conventional refurbishment for Angel Court, the decision was made to use an unconventional ‘stump’ construction method that removed exterior walls and floorplates leaving a stump of only the foundations and core of the 25-storey building.

This inventive approach ensured that existing planning consents remained in place and the original height of the building was retained whilst undertaking dramatic improvements to the structure and increasing the net area by over 60%.

Clad in an ‘invisible’ style skin, the new 24-storey skyscraper offers 300,000 sq ft of premium office space. When developing designs for the new structure, the decision was made not to simply maximize commercial floorplates but to offer extensive public area to tenants, including a dramatic 7,000 sq ft garden on the 7th floor, as well as communal lounges, an enhanced arrival experience with a triple height entrance and the first diorama (an outdoor glass enclosed garden) to be included in a UK development.

On the ground floor the public realm through increased public access, seating and artworks, as well as a creative range of restaurants designed to counter the meat-dominated offering of the immediate City area.

Angel Court now hosts headquarters for a range of businesses including BUPA, Prudential PLC, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, in a building where businesses thrive and people both work and wind down – from the lawns of the sky garden to the café tables of Coya.

Angel Court won Tall Building of the Year at the AJ Architecture Awards in 2017.