The Diocese of London, which operates through the London Diocesan Fund (LDF), is seeking an architectural firm to lead the design team for the renewal of the church of St Mark Hamilton Terrace in St. John’s Wood. Gardiner & Theobald (G&T) has been appointed as Project Development Manager.
On 27 January 2023, the building was comprehensively destroyed by fire, leaving a curtain wall and the tower as a monumental ruin.
The Parochial Church Council (PCC) working with the Diocesan Teams, wishes to commission a new building which will creatively integrate and adapt the remaining historic fabric. The commission will deliver a new place of worship, fit for the future, with supporting facilities and the design embracing the Church of England’s Net Zero ambition.
The site includes three contiguous sites: the church ruin, a post-war church hall and flat, and a post-war vicarage which is oversized by contemporary standards. An Options Appraisal will identify how the brief can be fulfilled to deliver the new place of worship and evaluate the development opportunities for adjacent sites. The likely construction cost for the new place of worship is estimated to exceed £20m.
Gardiner & Theobald has prepared a Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) to select a tender list for a later Invitation to Tender (ITT). The Project Board has agreed a list of firms to contact to check that they would be capable of meeting the selection criteria well and be keen to receive the PQQ.
The selection criteria will include demonstrating experience of the following:
- Project(s) over £15m construction cost
- Project(s) with existing buildings constructed pre-1940
- Project(s) involving worship or assembly space
- Projects involving community space
The brief is for a new building to be sited within and embracing the Grade II* listed ruin. The successful bid will demonstrate the ability to work both with historic fabric and creatively respond to a landmark site as well as maximise the development potential of the adjacent land. Consortia bids are allowed and indeed expected.
Expressions of interest should be emailed to m.poulard@gardiner.com by the deadline of 16 January 2026.