A historic return to Smithfield Poultry Market

Six decades after building the Smithfield Poultry Market, we are back to transform the site into the new home for London Museum.

Originally rebuilt by us after a fire in 1958, the Poultry Market featured Europe’s largest concrete dome and earned a Grade II listing.

Now, it’s being reimagined alongside the General Market building as part of the London Museum project.

The project is the focus of a Construction News feature exploring some of the complex construction challenges on the scheme, which is due for completion in late 2026.

Key highlights include:

Working in a 24/7 environment which still provides space for traders between midnight-7am on weekdays

An inside-out build strategy, with all work being done within the building footprints requiring meticulous planning and logistics

The insertion of a huge steel frame, rising from basement to level one, threaded through the existing structure

Overcoming surprise findings, including finding an alternative way to connect into rebar due to an unexpectedly high carbon content

The use of sustainable cross-laminated timber for the roof

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