Building Better Together Delivering Sustainable Social Housing for Greenwich
At Matter, we believe that every structure should strengthen communities, a value reflected in our team’s approach. Partnering with Haptic Architects, Stephen Taylor Architects, and the Royal Borough of Greenwich, our team is proud to contribute engineering expertise to new affordable homes designed for the people who live, work, and grow here.
A Milestone for Our Practice and for Local SMEs
This project marks an exciting step: our first public tender win, ten years after our founder, Christina Hsieh, was invited to No.10 Downing Street to discuss how government can support SMEs.
We’re deeply thankful to the Royal Borough of Greenwich for creating fairer tender opportunities. By breaking large frameworks into smaller, values-led packages, the Council has empowered local, women-led, and sustainability-driven businesses like ours to participate and make a difference. This model is reflected in the social impact we measure across our projects.
Sustainable Structural Design in Action
Our engineering strategy focuses on low-carbon, durable, and flood-resilient design that delivers long-term value for residents and local authorities. Guided by best practice from the LETI Climate Emergency Design Guide
Key sustainability measures we’ve implemented:
Reduced concrete foundations: Replacing traditional strip footings with micro-piling using recycled materials — cutting embodied carbon and installation time.
Low-carbon materials: Specifying sustainable engineering blockwork to minimise emissions.
Timber LVL structures: Reducing reliance on steel beams, achieving both cost savings and carbon reduction.
Flood-resilient design: Integrating flood risk assessments and sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) to future-proof the development.
Optimised structural weight: Lighter designs reduce the number of piles required, further minimising environmental impact.
Our approach is consistent with insights from other projects highlighting sustainability in action.
Growing Skills, Growing Communities
Projects like this don’t just shape buildings, they shape people.
Our degree apprentices gain hands-on experience in sustainable structural engineering, learning how design choices affect carbon, cost, and resilience. It’s part of our commitment to mentoring the next generation of engineers who will continue building responsibly.
Collaboration That Creates Lasting Value
Sustainability thrives through teamwork. Working alongside architects, local authorities, and contractors, we ensure design intent aligns with practical, low-carbon delivery. Standards recommended by the UK Green Building Council.
Every decision, from foundation design to drainage layout, reflects our belief that engineering should serve both people and planet.
Explore how we can help deliver low-carbon, community-led housing that supports your ESG and net-zero commitments.