Southwark approves Canada Water masterplan

Southwark Council has granted planning permission for the 53-acre Canada Water regeneration project.

The scheme, which has been put forward by developers British Land, will see the creation 12 acres of new open space, a new town square and the first new high street in London for 100 years.

The project will also around two million square feet of workspace to accommodate around 20,000 jobs and around 3,000 new homes, of which a third (35%) will be affordable.

The site includes the Surrey Quays shopping centre, the former Daily Mail printworks and the abandoned Rotherhithe police station.

Space has also been allocated for the delivery of a health facility and a new police hub.

The planning permission also covers the delivery of the first three new buildings in the overall masterplan.

These buildings include 265 new homes, a leisure centre, new public spaces, 330,000 sq. ft. workspace and around 2,300 jobs which could be delivered by 2024.

The first building (A1) will provide both residential and workspace, while the second (A2) will be focused on workspace and a new leisure centre, with both buildings providing a small amount of retail at ground floor.

The third building (K1) will be wholly residential.

‘The masterplan provides the blueprint for an exciting new town centre that will provide thousands of new homes, particularly hundreds of new social rent homes, new jobs and opportunities, new open spaces and a brand-new leisure centre for Rotherhithe in the first phase of the work,’ said Southwark Council leader, Cllr Peter John.

‘We look forward to working with British Land over the next few years to bring forward the plans and making sure our local residents are the beneficiaries of the opportunities the regeneration will provide, as laid out in the Canada Water Social Regeneration Charter.’

The chief executive of British Land, Chris Grigg, added: ‘We have an incredible opportunity at Canada Water to create a vibrant neighbourhood for people to live, work and enjoy.

‘We’re hugely excited about delivering this exceptional, mixed-use and sustainable landmark development, which has been designed to support people’s wellbeing. We thank the council for all their hard-work and we look forward to continuing to work with them and the local community.’

Photo Credit – British Land