Leading heritage housebuilder City & Country has announced today (Friday 9th May) it has exchanged contracts to purchase the former Legal & General HQ in Kingswood, spanning 47.5 acres, further adding to the business’ recent acquisitions in pursuit of expanding the delivery of quality homes.
City & Country will re-submit plans for the site, which has existing planning permission for 280 care dwellings and associated amenity areas including a wellness centre, swimming pool, restaurant, and on-site stop and store units.
The former L&Q building comprises several existing buildings including Grade II* offices and the locally listed former St Monica’s School. The S106 agreement was formalised in September 2020, including improvements to local footpaths and level crossings. Knight Frank acted on the disposal of the site.
The site became vacant in 2018, and in 2020 full planning and listed building consent was granted for an Integrated Retirement Community comprising 270 units and 10 respite care units across four phases, with associated amenity areas and landscaped gardens.
Wayne Douglas, MD at City & Country, comments: “At City & Country, we have a strong track record in preserving our nation’s important listed buildings by delivering new high-quality developments, so this site is a perfect fit for us. The former L&G House represents another exciting, high-profile development opportunity for the business which we are confident will further enhance our reputation in the industry as well as contribute to the new housing that the country needs. We are looking forward to sharing more plans in the near future to meet the evolving needs of the community and bringing new life to this site which has been vacant for too long.”
City & Country’s Land and Property Director, Simon Marner, adds: “The team at City & Country have a passion for breathing new life into existing heritage buildings and historic sites to secure their long-term future so that they can be enjoyed both in the short term and by future generations. Our philosophy as a developer is to create places where owners, tenants, and residents aspire to want to live and work.”
The development is well situated in Kingswood, within the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey. Kingswood is well known for its golf courses and proximity to the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The site is located with local amenities nearby including a village store, pub, cafes and restaurants. Kingswood Station is located just south of the site, which provides direct connections towards London Bridge.
City & Country has recently started work on the former Bath Press Site, purchased in March 2024,and has current developments including The 1840 St George’s Gardens in Wandsworth, a Grade II listed building and former hospital carefully redesigned into 1, 2, and 3-bedroom apartments, Factory No 1, a mixed listed conversion and new build scheme, in Bristol and the West Apartments at the King Edward VII Estate development in the South Downs National Park; and various other schemes across Essex.
For further information about City & Country, please visit https://www.cityandcountry.co.uk/
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