Highgate has been a hilltop settlement since the 14th century, when the Bishop of London established a tollgate on the road to the north. The village retains its medieval street pattern — The Grove, South Grove, and Highgate High Street form a compact Georgian core of extraordinary quality, with early 18th-century brick townhouses, coaching inns, and a concentration of Grade II* and Grade I listed buildings that rivals any village in England.
Beyond the Georgian core, the housing stock extends through substantial Victorian villas along Cromwell Avenue and Bisham Gardens, Edwardian Arts & Crafts houses on the Holly Lodge Estate, and significant 20th-century homes including Berthold Lubetkin's Highpoint I and II — Grade I and II* listed masterpieces of International Modernism. The dramatic topography means many properties are built into the hillside, with split levels, retaining walls, and basement arrangements that create unique structural and engineering challenges for renovation.
For homeowners in N6, the unique challenge is the split borough jurisdiction. Your property might fall under Camden, Haringey, or Islington — and each has different planning policies, conservation area guidelines, and tree protection orders. A project on one side of Highgate High Street might be governed by completely different rules to a property 50 metres away. Our architects know exactly which authority governs each street and have established relationships with all three planning departments.
That negotiation is what we do. Our design studio is on Finchley Road. Our architects have worked with Camden's planning team on hundreds of applications. We understand the constraints because we live within them.
