It was the first modernist block in the UK designed to be occupied by the working class and on completion in 1937, was widely thought to be a prototype for modern living.

It was commissioned and financed by the Gas Light and Coke Company (GLCC) to provide 68 "working-class flats", housing 380 people.

[2][5] In 1940, Kensal House provided the cover image for James Maude Richards's An Introduction to Modern Architecture, published by Penguin Books.

[3] Further wording on the poster reads: "Clean, airy and well planned dwellings make a great contribution to the Rehousing movement.

[4] It is Grade II* listed with Historic England,[9] as is the associated Kensal House Day Nursery.