Painting & decorating on the Marylebone–Fitzrovia fringe

The East Marylebone townscape

Westminster’s East Marylebone audit records a mixture of terraces, shops, offices, industrial buildings and mansion blocks. Its Great Titchfield Street examples include red-brick flats with decorative details and timber sashes, some above shops. This page concerns the Westminster side of the fringe; check the authority for the full address.

Sources: Westminster: East Marylebone conservation area audit

Decorate the intended surface

Exposed brickwork, decorative stone and terracotta should not become painted surfaces simply to make a scheme consistent. Mark them as retained features in the brief. Indoors, assess plaster, existing lining and fitted joinery individually. A converted workspace may have a mixture of earlier and recent finishes; describe what is present rather than applying a specification based only on the building’s age.

Manage the threshold between uses

For rooms over a shop or beside an office, clarify the entrances and service routes. Check whether work can be phased independently of the other occupiers and who should be contacted about deliveries. Include sound surfaces along the route in the protection plan. If access depends on a neighbouring business being open, agree the arrangement before building the programme around it.

Choose colour against retained materials

Use samples beside flooring, exposed structural elements and existing fittings that will stay. In connected work and living spaces, decide whether one finish will run through or change at a clear architectural break. Record the paper reference and batch separately where wallcoverings are planned. The final room schedule should name the product and sheen for each substrate, with stripping and repairs described as their own tasks.

• Full address and the relevant building manager
• Materials to retain without coating
• Shared entrances and business operating constraints
• Room-by-room product and wallcovering schedule