This residential neighbourhood is an interesting area of south Pimlico, by the banks of the river Thames, facing Battersea and Vauxhall to the south. The area includes Churchill Gardens, a public housing estate built in the post-war era. The flats are comprised of tall slabs, surrounded by shorter blocks, with a few terraces interspersed between them. It is one of the most socially diverse public housing projects in the UK, and was designated a conservation area in 1990. However, the estate does not actually face the Thames itself, and a series of modern flats hug the river banks instead. St. George’s Square, a long linear park, splits the area in two, ending at the Pimlico Garden & Shrubbery, William Huskisson Memorial and Westminster Boating Base. Another notable development in the area came before Churchill Gardens. Dolphin Square was built in the 1930s as a mini-city of 1250 upmarket flats. It quickly grew to be extremely popular with politicians and public servants, due to its proximity to Whitehall. Transportation-wise, Pimlico Underground station sits to the east, and is the main public transportation hub, and Vauxhall Bridge is near to the main road. To the west is a large railway line, with a bridge crossing, which separates the area from Chelsea.

Churchill Gardens was built after the Second World War, to replace the badly damaged Victorian terraces (seen in much of the rest of Pimlico), as part of the Abercrombie Plan to rebuild London in a more ‘efficient’ manner (this was the only part of the Plan to ever be completed to its exact specifications). This efficiency was shown in the district heating being distributed by the accumulated tower, originally piped under the river from Battersea Power Station.

Churchill Gardens was built to house some 5000 people in 36 blocks, 1661 homes, over 30 acres of land. The project was designed by Powell and Moya, architects for Westminster City Council, aged 24 and 25. While the buildings have gotten much praise, the landscaping is also noteworthy, being personally designed by Powell and Moya, who worked with a former head gardener at Kew.

Pimlico is well-connected to central London, and is surrounded by affluent neighbourhoods (and doesn’t fare too badly itself). However, it does have a reputation for being a little boring, with not much in the way of an arts or entertainment scene. Also, being hemmed in by the river and the national rail lines, it is a little isolated during the weekends, when Westminster itself is quiet, and no activity spills into the area.

Dolphin Square is finally undergoing a much-delayed and much-anticipated refurbishment and renovation programme. Originally, the renovation proposal, which was budgeted at £400 million, suffered a great deal of criticism and objection by the public as well as Westminster Council, who refused the planning permission of owner and developer (at the time) Westbrook Partners, a US property firm. The original proposal involved the demolition and reconstruction of some of the buildings and garden spaces of the site. Plans for Dolphin Square’s refurbishment were brought back on track recently in 2020 when the ownership of the project changed to AXA Investment Managers, who have scrapped the demolition aspects of the proposal and focused on renovation and modernisation instead. The restoration programme’s first phase, focusing on Duncan House, began in late 2021, and should follow a three phase scheme that is expected to be completed in mid-2029.