The Kensington Hideaway

Greenway Associates acted as Cost Consultant for The Hideaway, a refined boutique hotel marking the relaunch of the former Seraphine Kensington on Kensington High Street. Designed as a discreet retreat, the hotel combines contemporary luxury with timeless detailing, offering guests a calm, residential atmosphere just moments from Kensington Gardens, the Royal Albert Hall and the Design Museum.

Warren Lisher and Liam McFaul led the scheme as both Project Managers and Quantity Surveyors, guiding it through design development and construction within the constraints of a tight Kensington High Street site.

THE PROJECT

Hideaway is a 59-room boutique hotel reimagined around a literary-led interior concept designed by Tonik. Guest room categories reference the lives and works of notable authors including William Makepeace Thackeray, Agatha Christie, T.S. Eliot and P.L. Travers, creating a collection of distinctive yet understated spaces that balance narrative with comfort.

Throughout the hotel, the design draws on themes of storytelling, travel and quiet retreat, with layered materials, soft lighting and carefully detailed joinery contributing to a calm, immersive atmosphere.

At ground level, the hotel introduces a 35-cover restaurant and bar conceived as an intimate, neighbourhood-focused space. Designed to welcome both guests and locals, it offers a relaxed setting from morning through to evening, with a menu and cocktail list subtly inspired by Kensington’s literary and cultural heritage. The space plays an important role in anchoring the hotel within its wider context, bridging the experience between visitor and local community.

PROJECT ACHIEVEMENTS

Working closely JMK Group, Greenway Associates delivered the refurbishment of The Hideaway as a technically complex and heritage-sensitive scheme, balancing precision with a respect for the existing building fabric.

The project revealed and celebrated key elements of the original structure, including striking curved steel beams and resilient mid-20th-century brickwork uncovered during the works. These features informed the new design approach, which responds with a bespoke curved stone cladding system, pre-fabricated off-site to exacting tolerances.

A new lead roof and complementary cladding were also introduced, carefully detailed to integrate with the retained façade and ensure a cohesive architectural expression across old and new.

Sustainability was central to the scheme, with the project targeting BREEAM Excellent and LEED Gold certifications. These ambitious benchmarks reflect both the client’s commitment to responsible design and Greenway Associates’ ability to manage a complex, high-quality refurbishment through to completion.

The result is a carefully considered refurbishment that combines technical rigour with a clear design vision, delivered within a constrained and highly sensitive central London site.

CHALLENGES ON SITE

From a cost consultant’s perspective, The Hideaway presented a series of technical and logistical challenges that required careful planning and coordination. Originally two separate buildings, the hotel had a complex structural layout. During refurbishment, the central “spine wall” dividing the properties was removed along with the roof and most internal walls, leaving only the external façades intact. This approach demanded extensive temporary steel bracing to maintain the building’s stability throughout construction, while allowing the new design to be implemented safely and efficiently.

The project was further constrained by its tight urban site on Kensington High Street. With no space to store materials on-site, deliveries had to be carefully sequenced and installed immediately, and rubble was cleared daily to avoid obstruction. Vertical access was also limited: without permission for road closures, and with no external hoist or chute available, large steel members for the new floor could not be craned in. Instead, these elements were redesigned into smaller, lighter components, brought through the building and assembled on-site, ensuring both structural integrity and adherence to programme.