The planning application for the British Museum World Conservation and Exhibitions Centre was approved by Camden Council on Thursday 17 December 2009.
The site is located in the North West corner of the Museum estate which forms part of the Bloomsbury conservation area. The facility will include a special exhibitions suite, a scientific and conservation department, additional long term collection storage as well as an object handling hub.
The challenge was to produce an elegant design that expresses the contemporary role and international standing of the Museum but executed in a manner which takes its cue from the Museum’s own institutional and architectural legacy. The design incorporates five linked pavilions (with connection points to the main Museum building), covering 17,000m² with façades in glass and stone, making a visual link to the King Edward VII Building.
Further work on the project will commence in January 2010, with proposed completion in 2013.

For more information
http://www.britishmuseum.org/the_museum/history_and_the_building/new_centre.aspx