Creating Identity

Student accommodation has evolved far beyond simply providing a place for students to sleep. Today’s students are seeking environments that support wellbeing, encourage social connection and foster a genuine sense of belonging. At Venti House AWW’s Interior Design team has created a series of carefully considered spaces that do exactly that.
Located in one of London's most diverse and fastest-growing neighbourhoods, Venti House has been designed to feel intrinsically connected to its surroundings, which once accommodated an industrial powerhouse and one of the most important historic textile districts in Britain. Venti House is heavily influenced by its rich silk weaving and textile production heritage.  The design language reinterpreting traditional weaving techniques, patterns, and materiality into a contemporary living environment tailored to students, resulting in spaces that feel authentic, welcoming and rooted in place.

The material strategy emphasises tactility, layering, and craftsmanship, examples of this include feature textured, woven fabric acoustic panels, and tiling and artwork that not only echo woven surfaces but enhance comfort. Warm, neutral tones are accented with bold colours of deep blues, burnt oranges, and rich reds reflecting dyed yarns.

Creating Community  

With urban loneliness as a growing concern among the student population, particularly those living away from home for the first time in high-density cities, interior design plays a crucial role in shaping social behaviour, fostering connection, and reducing isolation. Thoughtful spatial design can act as a social catalyst—encouraging interaction without forcing it.

Therefore, our design philosophy for the project sought to actively combat urban loneliness by creating a sequence of welcoming and inclusive shared settings that encourage students to come together beyond the privacy of their bedrooms. Choice plays a key role in this— supporting both a desire for personal space and the ability to engage in a shared, social environment. The design strategy recognises that while student bedrooms provide essential personal retreat, meaningful community is formed in the spaces in between.

We sought to achieve this balance by offering a range of amenity spaces that cater to differing needs. We wanted to create comfortable settings where individuals can enjoy solitude while still being part of wider community environments that naturally allow for casual interactions and a sense of shared presence. This layered approach recognises that community isn't created through a single shared room, but through a network of spaces that support different activities, personalities and routines throughout the day.

For AWW, Venti House represents more than a student living project; it reflects the practice's wider commitment to creating places where communities can thrive.

The scheme offers a variety of settings, all with varied atmospheres, respecting that connection can take many forms, from lively group activity to quieter, side by side working. Materiality, lighting and furniture selection play a key role in supporting wellbeing and social comfort. Warm, tactile finishes and domestic-scale, rounded furnishings help in creating spaces that feel homely and approachable. 

All spaces have been designed with inclusivity at the forefront, incorporating features such as wide circulation routes, accessible bathrooms, and kitchens with knee recesses to allow wheelchair users to comfortably use worktops. This is alongside environments that are carefully curated to support neurodiversity through clear wayfinding, calming sensory elements, and flexible, low stimulation spaces. The apartment interiors continue this philosophy. Calm, durable finishes and carefully selected materials create spaces that feel domestic, practical and timeless, providing students with a home that supports both independent living and everyday wellbeing.

That positive impact is already evident in Stratford in the landmark AJ100 Community Impact of the Year winner, the Mary Ward Centre.

Although one project supports adult learners and the other provides homes for students beginning a new chapter of their lives, both demonstrate a consistent design philosophy: that architecture and interiors should strengthen communities by creating places where people feel connected, supported and inspired.
 

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