The old Tram Depot in Clapton, once a major hub for horse-drawn trams connecting London's East End with the City, is set for a remarkable resurrection. After nearly two decades of neglect and fierce battles over its future, the site will be carefully refurbished and reborn as a creative hub, preserving its Victorian edifice and industrial character.
A History of Decline and Protest
Since 2008, the depot faced two demolition proposals. The first sought to replace the entire footprint with offices and flats; the second, approved in June 2010, required partial demolition for 92 flats and seven-storey towers. Both met with concerted protest, with hundreds of formal objections and loud campaigning from residents, artists, and Hackney councillors. When some tenants were displaced around 2014, the creative community marked their departure through a public exhibition, Deserted Village, featuring portraits and archive interviews with mechanics, artists, and furniture makers who had built their livelihoods there.
The Gilini Group's Vision
Now, developer Gilini Group plans to retain the depot's original structure and provide 34 creative business units for furniture makers, photographers, manufacturers, and artists, taking advantage of the airy, double-height space. Features that made the depot a landmark will be kept, while family homes will be added at the rear. Sim Batth, head of property for Gilini, said: "London is losing its creative infrastructure faster than it can be replaced, and sites like this are exactly what the city cannot afford to demolish. When we acquired Clapton Tram Depot, we were acquiring something irreplaceable — a working creative ecosystem that has survived two decades of development pressure."
Preserving Heritage and Community
Built in the 1870s, Clapton said farewell to the last horse-drawn tram in 1907 and the last trolley bus in 1939. It later became a bus garage. Its raw, industrial interiors and exposed brickwork provided the setting for the 2018 Tomb Raider film and the movie On Chesil Beach. Batth emphasised: "What we're looking to do is to retain that and create a catalyst to drive the area. Clapton is very much a forgotten quarter... It's attracting a young, upwardly mobile demographic who are looking for value and originality."
Balancing Workspace and Amenities
The depot already houses a branch of the upmarket BLOK gym chain and a local café-deli, the Tram Store, which also serves as a wedding and party venue. Both will remain in the Gilini makeover. Designed by Yellow Cloud Studio, the plan balances new workspace with additional external space, including a public courtyard and upper terrace, reflecting evidence that access to outdoor areas improves productivity and wellbeing.
Supporting Creative Entrepreneurs
Gilini's wider aim is to build ladders for the next generation of young entrepreneurs. Batth said: "We want to create something closer to a bustling startup culture — state-of-the-art working conditions designed for young, hungry entrepreneurs who would otherwise never get access to space like this in London." He noted that the Greater London Authority found two-thirds of at-risk studio sites identified in a landmark study had closed within three years, with small creative businesses priced out of the capital. Hackney, where Clapton is located, has become a counter-example: it's London's fastest-growing local economy, with 50,000 new jobs and 5,000 new businesses since 2017, and creative jobs in its enterprise zones growing by 140 per cent.
A New Boxing Academy Across the Road
Across the road from the depot, the new Boxing Academy will provide alternative education for students aged 12 to 16. Currently housed in temporary accommodation in Hackney, the oversubscribed school received an "outstanding" rating from Ofsted in its last inspection. It aims to give hope to pupils who do not fit easily into mainstream schooling, with mentors who have themselves been in the ring. The school's philosophy emphasises perseverance, both in boxing and in studying core curriculum subjects. Among its ex-pupils are a trainee accountant, a university student studying to be a trauma surgeon, and a deputy headteacher at a secondary school.
With the revitalised Tram Depot and the new Boxing Academy, Clapton is destined to be "forgotten" no longer.
