On the Street Where You Live: Everyday Heritage and Hidden Histories on Ranston Street

This guided walk and talk explored Ranston Street in London as a site of architectural experimentation, social reform, and everyday resilience. Once marked by poverty and disease, the street later became a testing ground for early social housing models developed by Octavia Hill, pioneering housing reformer and co-founder of the National Trust. It was also at the centre of the Eliza Armstrong case, a Victorian scandal that led to significant legal reforms protecting young girls.

Through historical storytelling and place-based dialogue, participants were invited to uncover the street’s rich layers, from Victorian housing reform to contemporary urban life, revealing how the past informs present understandings of home, care, and community. The event asked how so-called "ordinary" streets reflect wider narratives of social change and why everyday heritage matters in a rapidly transforming city.

This research was conducted by Charlotte Hegenmeyer and Oliver Pollard as part of the Contexts of Sustainable Heritage module on the MA Architecture and Sustainable Heritage/MA Interior Architecture course. The walk and talk was conducted by Charlotte Hegenmeyer. The module was led and research supervised by David Littlefield. The project was further developed into a public event as part of the London Festival of Architecture 2025, with curatorial and organisational support from Maja Jović.

Key Themes:

Everyday heritage and the politics of place

Women in housing reform and urban history

Social justice, memory, and the built environment

Format:
Walking tour and facilitated discussion

Location:
Ranston Street, London NW1

Duration:
1 hour

Target Audience:
Researchers, students, heritage professionals, and members of the public interested in urban history, architecture, social justice, and participatory research methods.