A guide to living in Central London

Overall, my experience living in Dolphin Square has been very positive. The development has a distinctive architectural style and a well-maintained environment. The gardens and communal areas are particularly impressive and provide a peaceful space in the middle of London. The buildings are solid and the flats are generally well designed, with practical layouts and good natural light.

I have been living in Dolphin Square for three years, and these three years have been the best living experience I’ve had in London. I’m especially grateful to Mickey Mahmoud, who has always patiently answered my questions. Every staff has been incredibly friendly. Last year, when I was injured, the security team helped me carry my luggage, and the reception staff comforted me.

I have really enjoyed living at Dolphin Square. I have lived here for 15 of the last 21 years and would highly recommend it to others. My top tip would be to rent a flat overlooking the beautiful gardens, if possible. Pros - Pimlico is a great area. Central but quiet, with excellent transport links and good amenities. It is generally a safe area (albeit with some anti-social behaviour issues). - The flats themselves are extremely well designed, and are very nice to live in. I have always lived in the heritage flats, but I understand that the restored flats have been completed to a very high standard. - The Management Departments are on-site and are very helpful, particularly Maintenance. Reception will generally do their best to resolve any issues raised with them. - The Landlord takes its responsibilities very seriously, and there are regular checks of fire doors, smoke alarms, asbestos, etc. - With your permission, Maintenance will come to your flat when you are out to fix things. This is extremely helpful if you are working. The Maintenance team have all been DBS checked, and I have never had an issue with them coming while I am out. - The gardens are beautiful with loads of wildlife (birds esp. ducks and parakeets, squirrels, bats, foxes). They are well maintained by a team of gardeners. - The communal areas are kept very clean. The cleaners come daily on weekdays. Our rubbish is collected from the rubbish cupboards outside our front doors. Cons - We are in the middle of a 10-year restoration project and the building works (9am-5pm, Mon-Fri, with a break for lunch) are extremely noisy. Be aware of this if you WFH. - The Security team are not good. I have reported issues of ASB taking place below my window and Security have not only failed to investigate but also responded to me telling me it had ceased – while it was still ongoing! I regularly see a member of the Security team playing on their mobile phone under the arches next to Grosvenor Road, when they are presumably meant to be patrolling the Square! - Pimlico, in common with the rest of London, has experienced a rise in crime since Covid and there has been a rise in ASB in the Square and in Pimlico in general. Outside groups often come into the gardens late at night in the summer, to smoke drugs and to cause a noise nuisance. The underpass by Pimlico tube station can be intimidating and unpleasant from early evening onwards. - I was frustrated when I moved into my current flat as, although I had confirmed numerous times that I was renting it on an unfurnished basis, I arrived and discovered it was still full of furniture. In addition, the Inventory I was sent was also for a furnished flat, even though I was renting an unfurnished flat. However, when I raised this with the Lettings Team, the furniture was removed the same day. Unfortunately, it made the stress of moving in much worse than it needed to be. - Be aware that the Landlord has issued many Section 21 notices to compel residents to move out – primarily affecting residents who had moved in during Covid, when rents were cheaper. This issue has been raised with our MP by individuals and the Dolphin Square Tenants’ Association. - The older heritage flats do tend to have problems (this is why there is a 10-year restoration project ongoing). There can be issues with the water and heating, and sometimes they are very serious e.g. pipes bursting. - Living in a block of flats, everyone needs to be respectful of each other. As part of our lease, we sign the Dolphin Square Flats Regulations, agreeing to many rules such as not making noise after 11pm, not leaving rubbish in the communal hallways, not moving heaving furniture before 8am, etc. This is to make the Square a pleasant place for everyone to live. Unfortunately, a minority of residents ignore these rules and think it’s fine to make a lot of noise late at night. The onsite Security team can be called to ask them to be quieter, but this does not always have an effect.

I’ve been living in this development for a while now and overall I’d say my experience has been moderately positive. The design of the buildings is quite modern and practical. The layout of my unit is efficient, with good natural light and decent sound insulation compared to other places I’ve rented before. The common areas are kept clean and the overall atmosphere feels comfortable and safe.

Beautiful development, quiet and peaceful gardens and good community of residents...both old and new. Amazing lobby and workspace/cafe. And the staff are what made it a warm place to live...from Mickey and letting team, to Fei in tenancy team, to Maddie in the Cafe and the whole staff...people were the difference maker.