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Westminster City Council has approved Witherford Watson Mann Architects’ £90m renewal of the Royal College of Art’s Grade II-listed Kensington campus. Centred on the Darwin Building, the phased project is designed to update teaching, studio and public spaces while preserving the building’s heritage; completion is expected in 2032.
What has been approved?
Westminster City Council approved the Royal College of Art (RCA) Kensington campus renewal, according to Building Design’s report of 6 October 2026. Witherford Watson Mann Architects is leading the scheme with Clementine Blakemore Architects. The reported headline project cost is £90m; no detailed budget breakdown is available in the report.
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The project is centred on the Darwin Building and combines conservation work with changes to how the campus supports teaching, research and public engagement.
What is the Darwin Building?
The Darwin Building was completed in 1963 and listed in 2001. It was designed by H.T. Cadbury-Brown, Hugh Casson and Robert Goodden, who were members of RCA staff. Its listed status makes the renewal an adaptation of a significant post-war building, rather than a straightforward replacement project.
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What will change on campus?
Teaching, studios and workshops
The proposals add teaching and learning areas and modernise studios and workshops. These changes are intended to bring the campus’s working spaces up to date while retaining the Darwin Building as the focus of the renewal.
Access and the historic entrance
The scheme includes step-free access and reinstates the historic entrance facing the Royal Albert Hall, identified with 1851 Place. The RCA says reopening this entrance is intended to strengthen connections with the surrounding cultural district; that is an institutional ambition, not a measured project outcome.
Public-facing facilities
Planned public areas include a café, gallery and event spaces. The combination of college facilities and visitor-facing uses is intended to make parts of the campus more accessible to people beyond the RCA community.
How will construction affect college operations?
Work is planned in phases, with teaching and research expected to continue during construction. The available project reporting does not establish that every activity or space will remain unaffected, nor does it provide detailed phase dates or a construction contractor.
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When is completion expected, and what is known about the cost?
Completion is expected in 2032. The £90m figure is the reported headline project cost, not a published final outturn or a detailed estimate broken down by work package. No funding breakdown is stated.
The RCA cites improved energy efficiency and campus consolidation as sources of longer-term savings. No quantified savings, carbon target or measured energy-performance result has been reported, so the scale of any financial or environmental benefit is not established.
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Why the project matters
The renewal brings together several construction challenges: conserving a listed modern building, adapting it for contemporary teaching and workshop use, improving step-free access, and phasing work around a continuing college operation. It also adds public amenities and restores a historic entrance. These are stated project elements and aims; performance after completion will depend on delivery and operation.
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