Progress on plans to renovate 43-47 Mecklenburgh Square

Built between 1824-5, the houses are situated on the north side of Mecklenburgh Square, next to William Goodenough House (WGH) – one of the College’s two halls of residence. The houses are already integrated with William Goodenough House, with the back of the houses and the gardens overlooking current WGH accommodation.

The work, which is expected to be completed in summer 2026, will provide high-quality student accommodation as well as improving the fabric of the buildings, increasing their life and respecting their important place in Bloomsbury’s literary and academic heritage.

The project is part funded from the College reserves and by some very generous philanthropic donations. However, the project is not fully-funded and we will be reaching out for further support.  For more information contact Andrew McGowan, Director of Philanthropy.

The renovation project will allow the College to:

• Adjust the internal arrangement to offer improved accommodation – in doing this careful space planning will be exercised within the constraints of the existing listed buildings.
• Retain or repair existing heritage features, such as fireplaces, decorative cornicing, plaster mouldings and timber shutters to ensure the character of the listed buildings is preserved. Works will be approved through a listed buildings application.
• Increase the buildings’ energy efficiency by making thermal upgrades to each house – new glazing will be sensitively integrated into window frames and additional internal insulation added to external walls to improve energy efficiency.
• Provide all energy and hot water to the houses by a new Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) system, removing gas, reducing the carbon footprint of the houses and providing future resilience.
• Upgrade internal walls and floors to provide enhanced fire protection and acoustic comfort and bring the houses up to current regulatory standards.

Throughout 2025-26 the College will ensure that applicants for accommodation in William Goodenough House (single en suite rooms, single rooms with shared bathrooms, studios and flats) are fully informed about the renovation project when they apply and when they are made an offer.

During the construction phase (March 2025-August 2026) there will be some disruption to those who will be resident in William Goodenough House as the walls, roofs and windows of these 220 year-old houses are repaired and renewed. Whilst we will do all we can to minimise the inconvenience there will inevitably be noise and dust during the carefully controlled daytime working hours.

Throughout the project we will provide our student Members, and local residents and businesses with regular updates about each stage of the project and more specifically about any noise and other impacts they may experience.

To see more details of the project please download  the sample layout and floorplans.

If you would like to comment on the project please email externalrelations@goodenough.ac.uk