The Scheme

St. Andrews is a landmark regeneration scheme being delivered by Barratt London, working in partnership with the London Development Agency, the Homes and Communities Agency and Circle Anglia.

The site is located in Bromley-by-Bow, close to the 2012 Olympic Park, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.  Immediately to the north of the site is Bromley-by-Bow Underground Station (District and Hammersmith & City line) with the Devons Road Docklands Light Railway Station (DLR) five minutes’ walk to the west of the site.

The development is an exemplary regeneration scheme in that it transforms a derelict site and creates new homes, significant new community amenities and dramatically enhanced public realm, which open up access to the site and improves connections to the tube and bus network.

Formerly a Victorian hospital, the three-hectare site was essentially a walled derelict eyesore. It divided the communities and blocked access to the station. The crumbling Victorian buildings were a visual reminder of the poverty and neglect in the area.

The St. Andrews regeneration returns one third of the site to high quality public realm, creating new parks and play facilities. Routes through to the station improve connectivity and the new health centre and community buildings provide much needed facilities.

The St. Andrews development is focused on delivering sustainable development to the heart of the Bromley-by-Bow community.  Engagement with the community has been vital throughout the planning and construction of the scheme.  For more information please click here.  The three-hectare site will be transformed with 964 high quality new homes, a brand new health centre, community facilities, and one hectare of new gardens and parks.  The mix of housing types, the supporting community space, retail and healthcare provision combine to provide an excellent mixed-use development, bringing new services to not only the residents but also the existing neighbourhoods.

The development also makes a considerable contribution to sustainability, with the key aspects outlined below:

  • The development will achieve a Code Level 3 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.
  • Carbon emissions will be reduced by over 37.5% through improved building performance and also by Combined Heat and Power (CHP), community heating and biomass.
  • The ecological value of the site will be enhanced through implementation of a landscaping strategy, which includes the planting of native species and has been informed by the recommendations of the ecologist.
  • An extensive provision of public open space, play space and amenity space is incorporated in Nexus and across the development.
  • Recycling facilities are provided in easily accessible locations.
  • Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) will be incorporated to reduce site run-off.
  • Demolition materials are to be re-used in art installations within the landscaping.
  • The development is located in an area of high public transport accessibility to encourage travel by non-car modes.

Allies and Morrison has designed the masterplan in collaboration with architectural practices Maccreanor Lavington and Glenn Howells. Nexus, designed by Allies and Morrison, is the first phase of the development and is now complete and fully occupied. It provides the new health centre for the Tower Hamlets PCT and 194 new homes, of which 96 are affordable.

Union, Phase 2, is designed by Maccreanor Lavington and has delivered 230 new homes, of which 70% are affordable. It is now complete and fully occupied.

Fusion, Phase 3, has being designed by Glenn Howells and will deliver 227 new homes. Cores one, three, five and six have all been handed over and are occupied.

No.1, The Plaza (Phase 4) and Phase 5 were designed by Allies and Morrison and will include the creation of two new parks including a new public plaza with community centre and retail facilities and a new pedestrian link to Bromley-by-Bow station. No. 1, The Plaza is now under construction.

St. Andrews is a superb example of how regeneration can fundamentally transform opportunities and the quality of life in an area. Even more remarkable is the fact that work began in the teeth of the recession in January 2009 and both Barratt London and agencies such as the LDA and HCA have demonstrated their commitment to the scheme by staying true to the masterplan in a very adverse climate. It is hard to see what more could have been done to maximise the potential of the site, deliver benefits to the wider public and enhance public realm.

In July 2011 St. Andrews was awarded three prestigious Housing Design Awards. Nexus, Phase 1 and Union, Phase 2 won Best Completed Schemes Awards. Barratt London also won the Community Consultation award for the groundbreaking way it has worked with local residents and community associations to design St. Andrews. The third award won was the Graham Pye Award – a special award made each year to the development best suited to family living.

In November 2011 Union, Block B, won the Best Housing Development 26+ units at the Brick Awards. The judges described the development as ‘ a fantastic scheme that provides a secure protected area to live with vibrant areas. This excellent build addresses inner city housing in a lovely environment.’