William Bellamy Children Centre

DSDHA was appointed by the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham to design a significant new Children’s Centre at William Bellamy Infants School, located near the Civic Centre in Dagenham, on the northern edge of the Thames Gateway.

The brief included daycare facilities for children aged 0-4, creche provision for ages 0-7, flexible community meeting rooms, staff and ancillary spaces, and a well-considered provision of outdoor play areas. The centre is positioned within an expansive lawn on a site currently surrounded by low-quality public space, characterised by transport infrastructure, physical barriers, and signage.

In response, the new Children’s Centre is designed not only to provide high-quality education and childcare services for local children and families but also to establish a new kind of public space – one that bridges the suburban fabric of the neighbourhood with the civic identity of Dagenham, and reflects the area’s ambitions for a more vibrant and connected future.