Wates has secured full planning clearance for the £360 million transformation of the former Harrow Civic Centre site, paving the way for more than 1,000 new homes as part of the major Poets Corner regeneration.
Harrow Council has issued the formal decision notice following completion of the Section 106 agreement, almost a year after councillors resolved to approve the residential-led development.
The milestone unlocks the site for Wates Residential and the council’s Harrow Strategic Development Partnership, allowing the team to progress one of the borough’s most significant regeneration projects.
Detailed planning consent covers the first 530 homes, which will be delivered across three buildings rising to 12 storeys. This initial phase will include 422 Build to Rent apartments alongside 108 London Living Rent homes, creating a substantial new professionally managed rental community.
Outline approval has also been granted for a further 528 homes in later phases, with buildings reaching up to 15 storeys. Together, the phases will deliver 1,058 new homes on the former civic site.
Preparatory activity is already under way, with the council having previously approved demolition and other early works to prepare the site for the main construction programme.
Affordable housing forms an important part of the development agreement. The completed Section 106 deal secures at least 192 affordable homes across the wider scheme.
The regeneration will extend well beyond the construction of new apartments. Around 7,500 sq m of new public space is planned, alongside more than 4,000 sq m of children’s play space, helping create a new residential neighbourhood rather than a standalone housing development.
A substantial multidisciplinary design and engineering team is supporting Wates and Harrow Council. Sheppard Robson is acting as lead architect and masterplanner, with BDP responsible for landscape design. Stantec is providing planning, civil and structural expertise, while WSP is delivering building services and sustainability work.
The project will also provide employment and skills opportunities during its delivery, with the Section 106 agreement securing commitments for 35 apprenticeships, 63 work experience placements and 210 local labour roles.
Poets Corner represents the largest element of Wates’ wider £690 million regeneration partnership with Harrow Council, which is ultimately expected to deliver approximately 1,500 homes across the borough.
The scale of the programme reflects the increasingly important role of public-private partnerships in unlocking complex council-owned sites for new housing, while combining private rental, affordable homes, public realm and community benefits.
For Harrow, the redevelopment will see a major former civic site transformed into a new residential neighbourhood with Build to Rent at its heart.
With the Section 106 agreement completed and full planning clearance now secured, Poets Corner has passed a major development milestone, clearing the way for Wates to push ahead with the £360 million transformation.
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