Brighton Social Housing by SJB

Brighton Social Housing by SJB is located in Melbourne’s Brighton, nestled alongside Elster Canal and Elsternwick Park. With the support of Homes Victoria and Building Communities, SJB redeveloped 127 outdated dwellings with 291 well-designed social and private rental homes. The project demonstrates how social and private rental housing complement one another to form a community that flourishes through nuanced and highly considered design.

The buildings are seamlessly nestled into the neighbourhood with extensive greenery, mature trees and gardens that encapsulate the ‘home as sanctuary’ notion the architects sought to achieve. Interaction is fostered between the broader public and residents of the private dwellings through these generous communal gardens that feature interconnected streets and new pedestrian and bike paths.

“Nubrik Artisan in Aurora responds to the surrounding setting, drawing inspiration from Victoria’s frosty alpine environments with its contemporary cool grey winter hue.”

The extensive use of brickwork across the facades make them textural, tactile and robust, essential to improving the longevity and homeliness of the housing. The project features three bricks from the Brickworks range. Nubrik Artisan in Aurora responds to the surrounding setting, drawing inspiration from Victoria’s frosty alpine environments with its contemporary cool grey winter hue. With a traditional quality and cachet found in genuine pressed brick, it makes serves as a bold statement that perfectly complements modern living, style and design. Austral Bricks Access in Cream brings affordability and elegant style to everyday living, with a light texture that creates cohesion across all 291 homes. Austral Bricks Indulgence in Praline offers a strong contrast to these bricks through its subtle texture and quietly confident neutral tone. 

In utilising these products, SJB supports Brickworks’ Climate Active Offset Program. This campaign is a unique, Government-backed program that enables businesses, governments, and consumers to reduce their carbon emissions. Working alongside Climate Active, Brickworks actively examines their sourcing, manufacturing and delivery to reduce their overall carbon emissions. Brickworks is proudly the first Australian brick and paver manufacturer to achieve two Climate Active product certifications. The first certification was achieved by Austral Bricks Longford in 2014 for manufacturing bricks using low emissions biofuel. The second was for Brickworks’ new opt-in program that specifies and procures any clay brick or paver made in their Australian facilities as a carbon neutral product.