CIT and Foster + Partners have submitted a planning application for London’s first-ever net-zero carbon workplace and commercial hub at Colechurch House.

Colechurch House will replace a redundant 1960s office block to provide 46,200 sqm (497,292 sq.ft) of vibrant space. The planned development will transform the public realm creating an abundance of imaginative landscaped green spaces and will bring together state-of-the-art offices; high quality, affordable, work and art spaces; also providing greatly enhanced connectivity from London Bridge station to the Thames riverfront and wider area.

CIT’s Development Managing Director, Steve Riddell, commented: “The pandemic has amplified the need for change and given us the opportunity to reassess what we need from our work and social spaces, and how the built environment can work hard to address this change. We are excited to play our part in development that not only exceeds the UK’s environmental ambitions but that has the wellness of individual users it at its core. In accordance with Southwark Council’s climate emergency policy, Colechurch House is specifically planned and designed to be a catalyst for positive change in London prioritising social and environmental wellbeing. We want the development to define a new era for sustainability while being a distinctive addition to Southwark and its community.”

The new public park at street level will bring much needed outdoor space to Southwark, with the removal of the footbridge enhancing the setting and opening up views to Southwark Cathedral and nearby listed buildings.

Riddell added: “CIT has a firm foothold in Southwark and has shown a strategic commitment to the borough with More London, Southbank Tower and the proposed transformation of Vinegar Yard. CIT has a longstanding interest in developing sustainable buildings, with one of London’s earliest borehole cooled installations at More London and the reuse and extension of existing building structures such as Southbank Tower and Hylo – saving huge quantities of embodied carbon. Net-zero carbon Colechurch House gives us an opportunity to continue our trajectory of delivering genre-defining buildings that have shaped London over the past twenty-five years.”

Luke Fox, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners, commented: “We are delighted to be working with CIT on such a pivotal site in London, a project that will be a sustainable showcase, creating a vibrant new public space and flexible workspaces for everyone.”

The development is planned to create 4,500 new jobs, providing robust investment into the area and stimulus for sustained long term growth.

Cushman and Wakefield have been appointed as leasing agents for the project and have worked closely with the design team to ensure the spaces meet the highest standards in this exacting market.

See Southwark Council planning application ref. no. 20/AP/3013 submitted 12.10.2020.

Redevelopment of the site to include demolition of Colechurch House, pedestrian footbridge and walkway and erection of an elevated 22-storey building (+ 4-storey basement) above a public park and providing office floorspace, retail floorspace, restaurant/café floorspace, leisure floorspace (all Use Class E), theatre and a bar (Sui Generis), delivered alongside a replacement pedestrian footbridge, public realm improvements, roof gardens, cycle parking, servicing, refuse, plant areas and other associated works incidental to the development.

Developer: CIT
Architect: Foster + Partners