Plans to transform the former GlaxoSmithKline headquarters in Brentford into a major mixed-use neighbourhood featuring more than 2,300 homes have been approved.
Developer Hadley Property Group has secured planning permission for the large-scale redevelopment of the 13-acre site at 980 Great West Road in West London.
The scheme will deliver over 2,300 homes across a mix of tenures, with 35% designated as affordable housing. Alongside the residential development, plans include around 330,000 sq ft of commercial and retail space, creating a new neighbourhood along the M4 corridor.
A key part of the development involves retaining and repurposing two of the main buildings from the former GlaxoSmithKline campus, including its landmark tower. Hadley, which acquired the site three years ago, said the approach will help reduce embodied carbon while allowing the creation of new homes with large balconies, shared amenity spaces and a rooftop conservatory.
The reuse strategy is expected to save more than 34,500 tonnes of embodied carbon during the demolition and construction stages.
Studio Egret West is leading the redesign of the tower and is also involved in new affordable housing elements and the wider landscaping across the site.
More than 60% of the development area will be given over to public realm, including new play spaces, gardens and improved access to the River Brent and nearby Boston Manor Park.
The proposals also include around 23,000 sq m of employment space, with flexible units intended for local businesses, markets and community events.
Hadley said the project will open up what has historically been a closed corporate campus, introducing a series of distinct areas described as arrival, central, underside and riverside zones designed to reconnect the site with Brentford High Street.
One of the more distinctive features of the masterplan is a strip of public space known as the Underside, which will run beneath the elevated M4 motorway.
A number of architectural practices are involved in the project, including Haworth Tompkins, Studio Egret West, Metropolitan Workshop and DRMM.
The wider project team includes TPS as project manager, Gardiner & Theobald as quantity surveyor and Buro Happold providing MEP services.
Andy Portlock, chief executive of Hadley, said reaching planning approval reflected the collaborative approach taken with the local authority.
He said the development combines a major retrofit strategy with a strong focus on creating a new community, adding that the scheme will include a range of housing tenures alongside facilities such as a new NHS primary care centre and a technology and innovation hub as part of the emerging Golden Mile district in Brentford.
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