The story of Park Hill

Looming over the city centre from its prominent hilltop location, Park Hill is the largest Grade II listed building in Europe, and one of the most controversial buildings in the UK. It has long divided Sheffield’s residents, but whether you are a lover or hater, there’s no denying the structure’s imposing, iconic presence within the city we call home.

A vision of utopia

Designed by two young architect’s, Ivor Smith and Jack Lynn – Park Hill was originally constructed between 1957 and 1962. Inspired by Le Corbusier’s Unité d’habitation in Marseille, the duo had a radical vision to bring self-contained, high-density social housing to Sheffield.

Their concept was for ‘streets in the sky’ with four levels wide enough for milk floats to drive through, and each block having direct access to shops and pubs on the ground floor. These decks offered freedom of movement and emulated traditional alleyways between miner’s houses. By encouraging interaction on these decks, the architects hoped to avoid the problems of isolation often experienced by residents of high-rise buildings and foster a stronger sense of community.

Park Hill was, and still is, one of the largest examples of Brutalist architecture in the UK – a piece of architecture which became famous throughout the world for the way it ‘solved’ the problems of modernist housing. But Park Hill wasn’t to remain the source of pride it had originally been.

Unloved brutalism

Sadly, after only two decades, this vision of utopia began to fall into disrepair. The collapse of Sheffield’s steel industries, soaring unemployment and a lack of funding saw the estate fall from grace. The ‘streets in the sky’ instead became a symbol of broken dreams – associated with crime, ugliness and decay. By the 1990’s the estate was thoroughly unloved, and residents were gradually moved out.

Park Hill luckily avoided demolition when English Heritage awarded it a Grade II* listing in 1998. But how could this now ‘no go’ area be redeveloped into somewhere that was once again a welcoming place to live?

The rise of a Sheffield icon

After years of stagnation, Park Hill was eventually taken on by developers Urban Splash (in partnership with English Heritage) in 2004, with plans in place to regenerate and redevelop the estate.

Working closely with Sheffield City Council, English Heritage and a number of other partners, Urban Splash began a sympathetic redevelopment of Park Hill. They set out to preserve the building’s history and sensitively restore the structure’s distinctive concrete frame, whilst giving Park Hill a fresh new identity.

Phase 1 saw colourful panels added into the heavy concrete frame, and a new ‘high-street’ of shops and café’s created at ground level. Designed by architects Hawkins\Brown and Studio Egret West, Phase 1 was soon shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize, one of the most prestigious architectural awards. Park Hill had got its spirit back.

Since the completion of Phase 1 in 2013, the redevelopment has gone from strength to strength and in 2022, the latest phase of homes, designed by Mikhail Riches were completed. As the Park Hill community continues to grow, Urban Splash are now working with an art gallery to turn the fourth phase of the building into the Park Hill Artspace – a new gallery for the north, featuring a café, shop, studios and more. They are also working on plans for a fifth and final phase of redevelopment.

Nest at Park Hill

We are delighted to have joined the thriving Park Hill community with the opening of our brand-new showroom. Located in what was once one of the four original on-site pubs, The Scottish Queen is a landmark within Park Hill which spans an impressive 3,500 sq. ft.

Our new design destination showcases a curation of the very best in design from Nest's portfolio, providing a wealth of interior inspiration for visitors. The double-sided space is ideal for hosting events and our new neighbours, vegetarian and vegan café South Street Kitchen provide the perfect place to stop for lunch on your visit. Keep your eyes peeled on our Instagram account for the latest updates from our new location in Park Hill!

Have a question? Our friendly team would be happy to help. Please contact us via phone on 0114 243 3000, over email or using Live Chat.

Photography by Max Hawley.