Are you competing for design work on the Bakerloo extension?

Our main takeaways from ‘Back the Bakerloo – The Bakerloo Line Upgrade and Extension Panel Discussion’

Panel

• Cllr Helen Dennis – Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development, London Borough of Southwark
• Chris Porter - Transport Planning Manager for London
• Mayor Brenda Dacres – London Borough of Lewisham Roger Madelin CBE – Joint Head of Canada Water, British Land Nicola Mathers – Head of Networks, Future of London
• Roger Madelin CBE – Joint Head of Canada Water, British Land

We attended the UKREiiF Forum last week and here are our main takeaways from attending the ‘Back the Bakerloo Line Upgrade and Extension’ Panel discussion, which Brenda Dacres, Mayor of Lewisham, remarks as being ‘the next biggest opportunity for the capital, with a huge focus on housing and redevelopment spreading over 139,000 sqm of new space’. The new upgrade and line extension project will usher in exciting and large-scale regeneration opportunities for South East London. This development promises to revitalise the area, creating a wealth of opportunities for designers to pitch for significant design work as the project progresses

Bakerloo extension design aims

• 14 new and accessible underground stations connecting New Cross, Lewisham & Catford to Harrow & Wealdstone
• 107,000 potential new homes, including affordable homes across the old line and the new Bakerloo line extension
• 3 new schools
• 3 new parks, an enhanced public realm, and multiple/commercial and retail-led mixed-use schemes

Takeaways from the panel discussion

During the panel Q&A, Councillor Helen Dennis for New homes and Sustainable Development in Southwark described how the borough has already invested ￡70m into the Elephant & Castle tube upgrade, going on to say that ‘Southwark recently agreed the strategic CIL framework, setting aside 50% of the funds for the release of Bakerloo extension and station upgrade design work. Southwark has identified 20,000 new residential opportunities on old Kent road, with over 330 built or on-site currently, with a second phase of housing planned when the Bakerloo extension begins. Release of land for development along old Kent Road has begun – with new green spaces through 3 new parks, improved walking and cycling routes and maybe even a lido’.

When questioned on how they will ensure that a large proportion of the proposed 107,000 residential units will be truly affordable, Councillor Helen Dennis stated ‘we have bought up land for the purpose to safeguard land and create new homes, social rent will be 35.% and affordable homes 50%’, although she admitted that 'land values being so high in Southwark would make affordability challenging’

Following on from this Jas Bhalla threw out to the panel that ‘social benefits and the quality of homes coming forward isn’t universally spread around the areas we’re seeing development in, with less successful outcomes showing in places with lower land values. What scope is there to learn from what worked well and less well for cross rail and how do you embed into the business case that there is a quality metric across all new homes built?’ The panel agreed there is a spectrum when it comes to the quality of affordable housing across different developments due to high land values and some boroughs having less infrastructure for new developments in place, however the jury is still out on how to answer this design challenge

When asked on the timeline for the project and how TFL would reply to concerns from the Central Government regarding the potential of spiralling costs beyond the ￡5bn-￡8bn proposed, Chris Porter – Transport Planning manager for TFL - stated ‘the route to Lewisham is protected and we have started building the scheme already. The station upgrade for the Bakerloo line extension has already started being built, we have a contract for new trains, so if we get the right level of support, we could have this in place by the late 2030s’. Chris went on to explain that the initial phase of the upgrade is not included in the ￡5bn-￡8bn estimates, but re-assured that TFL has ‘a lot of experience in delivering these schemes with the Northern and Elizabeth line… Crossrail was a complex system that went across numerous different types of railway, and we are looking at ensuring we have a consistent railway across London.’

Are you ready for the Bakerloo extension and upgrade?

With funds for new station design work recently released by Southwark Council and a target completion date for the Concept Design projected for 2026–2028, is your studio prepared to take on the design challenges of the new Bakerloo line extension project?

We are a specialist architecture and design recruitment company with an extensive network of competition design architects, specialist transport designers, and housing-focused architects. Our network is equipped to handle large-scale, high-profile projects like the Bakerloo line extension. Additionally, we provide experienced contract professionals skilled in high-demand package work, including construction detailing and tender documentation for UK residential and mixed-use projects.

Please reach out to discover how we can support you in securing and successfully executing your project wins

Snapshot of some projects on-site / recently completed

• HKR Architects & Southern Housing – Latona Works 181 homes and flexible workspace for artists, Southwark
• Ruby Triangle, Old Kent Road Southwark – Farrells & Avanton Limited . Residential led mixed use scheme 1,165 new homes, 35% affordable. Includes a new public park
• Malt Street, Southwark. Rolfe Judd Architecture & Berkeley Homes –1400 new homes, 6000m2 commercial space and new linear park. 40% affordable housing
• Maccreanor Lavington & LB Lewisham Grainger JV 324 homes including 35% for living rent - Besson Street New cross
• Lewisham Gateway PRP , UNStudio Amsterdam and Muse – 1101 New homes, 110 co-living scheme, retail and commercial mixed use scheme, cinema and new park
• 18-19 Crimscott Street tp bennett , Fruition Properties – 55 new homes, 37% affordable, 20,000sqft office space
• Vive Living and WORKSPACE – Buckley Gray Yeoman , Aitch Group for PRS & Vive Living – 83 apartments & 14,000 sq ft commercial space, retained fa?ade development
• Anthology Deptford Foundry, Rolfe Judd Architecture & Anthology, 276 homes
• 1 Whitepost Street, Fuse Architects & Hexagon Housing Association , 25 homes and refurbishment of railway arches, 975m2 commercial space
• 333-337 New Cross Road, Summix Capital, 63 bed student accommodation
• Astra House – RCKa + Pocket Living , 44 new homes in refurbishment of former commercial block
• Amersham Vale & Charlottenburg park – Pollard Thomas Edwards & Peabody Companies & Sherrygreen Homes – 120 homes and a new park space
• Lewisham Exchange – JTP Architects & Tide , 67 new homes and 758 student beds
• Connington Road – EPR Architects and Mayer Homes

To learn more about how Scale Careers can support you in securing and successfully executing your project wins, email us at [email protected], or call +44 203 838 0226.