Arding & Hobbs - National Winner Civic Trust Awards 2025

Congratulations to Arding & Hobbs, a National winner in the 2025 Civic Trust Awards.

Arding & Hobbs is a much-loved retail landmark at the heart of Clapham, now fully restored and extended. Built at the turn of the twentieth century, Arding & Hobbs is a department store whose civic presence had been eroded by unsympathetic additions and failing tenants. Our refurbishment returns it to its former place in the community, removing a 1970s canopy, restoring old features – clock tower, barrel vaults and stained-glass dome – and adding new, in the form of a CLT-framed roof pavilion clad in scalloped brass. Inside, workspaces sit above a base of retail.

The judges said, "The transformation of Arding & Hobbs has been done with a mix of skill and sensitivity and is superbly executed. It has brought a landmark building back into use, and successfully stimulates more vitality to a key location."

Civic Trust Winners are schemes which are of significant merit, contributing to the quality and appearance of the built environment, whilst being sustainable, accessible, and providing a positive civic contribution.