Plans submitted for £1.4bn Brent Cross redevelopment

Hammerson and Standard Life Investments have submitted a detailed planning application, in accordance with existing outline planning consent, for the £1.4bn redevelopment of the iconic Brent Cross Shopping Centre in London.

The plans, submitted to Barnet Council, envisage the refurbishment and extension of the shopping centre by introducing more than 200 new retail stores, 60 restaurants, a state-of–the-art cinema complex, hotel accommodation, a new town square, a relocated and enlarged bus station as well as improved public spaces.

Brent Cross London is the northern element of the wider £4.5bn regeneration plan for Brent Cross and Cricklewood, for which Hammerson and Standard Life Investments secured outline planning consent in 2010.

Designed by architects Callison RTKL and Chapman Taylor, the proposed development will see Brent Cross Shopping Centre double in size to around 185,000m² with 7,600 car parking spaces to become a world-class retail-led, mixed-use destination that will meet the demands of multi-channel retailing.

John Lewis and Fenwick will be retained and a new Marks & Spencer anchor store will be delivered. All three were part of the original Brent Cross, which revolutionised retail when it opened 41 years ago in 1976.

Standard Life Investments Head of UK Development James Stevens commented: “Our plans for Brent Cross London are progressive and ambitious. We are in discussions with a breadth of retail and leisure brands who are equally excited at becoming part of north London’s premier shopping centre”.

Hammerson Chief Investment Officer Peter Cole said: “This marks another significant milestone in the transformation of Brent Cross. We will create a world-class retail destination that will be the catalyst for a new and vibrant quarter. Brent Cross has been an iconic part of retail for more than 40 years and our plans seek to ensure that it continues to define the next generation of retail in London”.

Subject to planning consent, preliminary work on the development could start in summer 2018.