Looking back: Palmers’ suspended scaffold solution at Liverpool Street Station
Project at a glance - Looking back at excellence.
Scaffolding contractor: Palmers Scaffolding
Client: Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, working on behalf of Network Rail
Location: London Liverpool Street Station
Programme: September 2024 to May 2026
Scope: Installation, movement and removal of mobile suspended protection platforms supporting replacement of the train shed roof cladding
Replacing the roof cladding at London Liverpool Street Station called for more than a conventional access solution. The Grade I listed train shed is a historically significant structure, the station must meet strict fire requirements associated with its subterranean environment, and the work needed to proceed with minimal impact on passengers, platforms and train services.
A complex brief in a live station
Palmers Scaffolding was tasked with creating a safe “business as usual” environment beneath the works. The solution had to protect the railway and station users from overhead activity while allowing the terminus to continue operating day to day. At the same time, any loads imposed on the 19th-century building fabric had to be carefully controlled.
Primary logistics and scaffold operations have been carried out during normal working hours. Activities above the protection platforms and train lines have taken place during planned possessions, including the eight-day closure of the mainline station over Christmas 2024.
Four platforms, one adaptable system
Working with RDG Engineering, Palmers designed a series of lightweight suspended protection platforms using its aluminium Bridge Panel frame system. Each platform is approximately 50 metres long and is suspended from strong points in the existing internal roof steelwork. Existing roof walkways provide access.
One platform serves each of the train shed’s four spans. The platforms can move independently to follow the location of the roof works, or be brought together to create up to 30 metres of overhead protection across the full east-to-west width of the shed. The same approach can provide a continuous protective layer beneath work at the transept.
Designed to move
The platforms are launched from an erection gantry at the north end of the train shed and rolled into position beneath the roof. A bespoke roller system developed by Palmers enables the large suspended structures to travel through the shed and be repositioned as the programme advances.
That mobility is central to the project. Protection can be concentrated beneath a specific workface, helping the roof team make efficient progress, or extended across the train shed when wider coverage is required.
Lightweight by design
Keeping the protection system within the historic roof’s loading parameters shaped every part of the design. The Bridge Panel system’s crossover spigot allowed clusters of longitudinal beams to span both the length and width of the decks, transferring loads to suitable points in the existing steelwork.
Station constraints also led Palmers to develop bespoke beam and spigot arrangements derived from established industry solutions, including 750mm X beams. Together with pressed metal decking and other purpose-designed components, these measures reduced weight while preserving the strength and robustness required above an operational railway.
Experience applied at scale
The project draws on experience gained by Palmers and RDG Engineering on other major railway stations, including Paddington, St Pancras and King’s Cross. At Liverpool Street, that knowledge has been applied on a scale and in an environment that demand close coordination, precise engineering and careful possession planning.
The result is an adaptable protection system that supports a major roof renewal while safeguarding passengers, rail operations and the station’s historic structure.
