Gort Scott won the commission to design this temporary community space through a competitive tender organised by the GLA and the London Borough of Haringey.

With a modest budget and only 5 weeks on site, an inviting, practical and adaptable sequence of outdoor and indoor public spaces on the high street was delivered. At the front of the site, a painted canopy straddles the existing boundary wall and wraps around the foliage of an existing rowan tree. The generously-scaled structure protrudes into the space of the high street, acting both as a signpost and a portico to the space beyond. 

A timber-framed building by The Qube, manufacturers of pre-fabricated modular buildings, sits beyond, opening onto a landscaped 'outdoor room' lined with timber.

The project is the first stage in the transformation of 639 Tottenham High Road into an Enterprise and Employment Hub. In the interim, the Public Room houses a number of different initiatives helping business start-ups and young entrepreneurs and supporting employment opportunities for local people.

The hub has been such a success and the London Borough of Tottenham are interested in making it permanent. 

Opened in July 2012 by the Mayor of London, Tottenham Public Room is a new community hub in a previously disused yard adjacent to 639 Tottenham High Road, a Listed building that was burnt-out during the riots of Summer 2011.