Landmark HSBC Canary Wharf Tower Set for £1bn Mixed-Use Transformation
Plans have been submitted for a major retrofit of HSBC’s landmark Canary Wharf headquarters, paving the way for one of the world’s largest office building transformations. Canary Wharf Group and building owner Qatar Investment Authority have lodged proposals with Tower Hamlets Council to reinvent the 45-storey tower at 8 Canada Square as a new mixed-use destination combining offices, hospitality, leisure and publicly accessible spaces. While the development cost has not been confirmed, the ambitious project is expected to represent an investment in the region of £800 million to £1 billion. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF), the retrofit-led scheme will retain much of the existing 1.1 million sq ft structure while making substantial architectural interventions to reposition the former banking headquarters for its next generation of occupiers. A major feature of the design will be the transformation of the tower’s upper levels, where sections of the existing floorplates will be removed to introduce landscaped terraces and create a striking new profile on the Canary Wharf skyline. The redevelopment will retain significant office accommodation while introducing an 181-room hotel, restaurants and leisure facilities across the upper floors, reflecting the continued evolution of Canary Wharf from a predominantly commercial district into a broader mixed-use destination. At the centre of the proposals is the “Cloud”, a new publicly accessible destination across levels 42 and 43. Large sections of the upper floorplates will be removed to create a rooftop venue offering panoramic 360-degree views across London. At ground level, the redevelopment will also improve connectivity through the estate. A new north-south pedestrian route is planned through the building, creating a direct connection between the Elizabeth line station and Canada Square Park and helping to open up the tower to the surrounding public realm. HSBC is due to leave 8 Canada Square in 2027 when its existing lease expires, ahead of relocating its headquarters to the City of London. Strip-out works are expected to begin following the bank’s departure, with the main three-year construction programme scheduled to commence in 2028. KPF secured the commission after winning a design competition for the redevelopment in 2024. The shortlist is understood to have included Foster + Partners, the architectural practice responsible for the original tower, and Danish studio 3XN. The wider professional team brings together a number of leading construction and engineering specialists. Gardiner & Theobald is acting as project manager and cost consultant, Robert Bird Group is providing structural engineering expertise, while Sweco is responsible for MEP and sustainability consultancy. The proposals represent a significant example of large-scale adaptive reuse within the commercial property sector, retaining much of an existing high-rise structure while introducing new uses, modern building services, public spaces and extensive architectural alterations. If approved, the transformation of 8 Canada Square will mark a new chapter for one of Canary Wharf’s most recognisable buildings, demonstrating how major office towers can be repositioned to meet changing occupier requirements while supporting the district’s continuing shift towards a more diverse mix of workplaces, hospitality, leisure and public amenities. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
New Liberton High School opens doors to pupils
Cutting-edge building replaces existing Liberton High School as part of new community, lifelong learning and sports campus Staff and pupils at Liberton High School have started the new school year in their brand new state-of-the-art learning and community campus this week, after the building was handed over to the Council. Balfour Beatty was appointed by the Council to deliver the new building, which has been designed by jmarchitects. The new campus has been formed with the needs of learners in mind. To encourage collaborative learning, the school building features breakout and retreat spaces to offer pupils choice on where they want to work, socialise or take time out. Large windows fill the building with natural light, while helping to connect departments and classrooms with outdoor spaces. Internal spaces have been decorated with warm colours and light woods to create comfortable spaces for learning and coming together. Outdoor sports facilities include a new 3G synthetic rugby and football pitch and a multi-use games area. A new grass recreation area that can be lined for football or other sports activities will be added following the demolition of the former Liberton High School building. The 1,200-space school forms the centrepiece of the new Liberton Community Campus, a multi-purpose facility to help meet the needs of young people, their families and the wider community. Its spaces have been designed to allow all generations to come together in a number of ways, including a community café, library, GP surgery and workspaces for Council partners. New sports facilities operated by Edinburgh Leisure will feature bookable amenities for the whole community, including a fitness suite and dance studio. Information on when the other community facilities within the building will be ready for use will be published soon. The new Community Campus has been built to Passivhaus standard, minimising energy consumption and reducing the reliance on active heating or cooling systems, ensuring sustainable and eco-friendly construction. In addition to the Passivhaus design, the new school contains other sustainable features supporting the Council to meet its sustainability commitments. This includes measures to improve the air quality and thermal performance of the building which are vital to achieving Passivhaus certification. The new school building has been designed in line with the guiding principles of the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Strategy and is one of the projects in the second phase of the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme, alongside the project to redevelop Wester Hailes High School. Children, Education and Families Convener, Councillor James Dalgleish, said: The opening of the new Liberton High School marks a major milestone for pupils, staff and the wider community. This building has been designed to be futureproof with sustainability at its core, and I’m proud that it stands as one of Scotland’s first Passivhaus secondary schools. The school’s leadership team has played a crucial role in shaping a learning environment that puts the needs of young people first, while also meeting our commitments to a net‑zero future. This project is however about more than just a school. It’s the foundation of a community lifelong‑learning and sports hub that will bring together education, public services and local amenities in one accessible place, from a Community Library to an NHS GP Surgery. This reflects our ‘Living Well Locally’ strategy, ensuring local services are co‑located where people need them most. Our aim is simple: to put local people at the heart of this campus, giving everyone the opportunity to learn, participate and thrive. I’m delighted that this exceptional new building will help to bring more local people in the community together, and we’re looking forward to announcing more about the new community facilities soon. Stuart Danskin, Project Director at Balfour Beatty said: As Balfour Beatty’s first Passivhaus secondary school and the centrepiece of the new Liberton Community Campus, the successful completion of Liberton High School demonstrates our expertise in delivering innovative and sustainable infrastructure that creates lasting value for communities. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Lovell Renew and Amplius enter next phase of £58m social housing retrofit programme
Lovell Renew and Amplius kickstart year two of their partnership REFURBISHMENT and retrofit specialist Lovell Renew has officially commenced the second year of its three-year retrofit partnership programme with social housing provider Amplius. As part of the £58m Wave 3 Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund programme, the contract will deliver extensive energy-efficiency improvements to homes across Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Peterborough. Following a successful first year that saw 713 homes upgraded in 2025/2026, the partnership is now scaling up operations, to complete 750 in year two, 750 in year three and a further award of additionality to complete circa 1,500 additional properties within the same period. In total, the Wave 3 programme aims to improve more than 3,700 properties across Amplius’ portfolio by March 2028. Working with Amplius – a Strategic Partner with DESNZ, Lovell will also be improving approximately 250 more homes with Solar PV and battery installations taking us to almost 4000 upgraded properties. Matt Hickman, refurbishment partnerships director at Lovell Renew said: “Reaching the start of year two in our Wave 3 programme is a fantastic milestone for our team and our longstanding partners at Amplius Living. The application for funding to complete a further 1,800 homes also showcases the confidence in the partnership and our ability to deliver people-focused retrofit at scale and pace. “Having set high standards during Wave 2, we’re proud to build on that foundation and continue delivering high-quality, resident-focused decarbonisation across Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, and Peterborough. We also understand that retrofit is about far more than lowering carbon emissions, focusing on how we can improve people’s lives, tackle fuel poverty and make homes warmer and healthier. “ The Wave 3 programme builds on the successful completion of the earlier £15m Wave 2 contract, where Lovell Renew upgraded 260 properties in 2024/2025 installing more than 3,000 energy measures. That initial phase achieved a 98% resident satisfaction score (against a 95% target), 99.6% waste diversion from landfill and a 100% success rate in raising energy performance ratings from D-G up to EPC C or higher. Through a full PAS 2035 turnkey approach, homes are benefiting from a comprehensive suite of measures– including external and internal wall insulation, loft insulation, high-efficiency windows and doors, solar PV, air source heat pumps and AICO environmental monitoring sensors. Fallon Warren, head of asset optimisation, sustainability and commercial facilities at Amplius said: “Building on the success of our first year, we’re delighted to continue our partnership with Lovell Renew as we enter the next phase of our Warm Homes programme. What makes this partnership so successful is our shared vision and passion for delivering retrofit the right way – not simply installing energy efficiency measures, but creating safer, healthier and more affordable homes while putting our customers at the heart of every decision we make. “Together, we’ve developed a collaborative approach that focuses on quality, resident engagement and long-term outcomes, ensuring customers are supported throughout their retrofit journey. As we significantly increase delivery over the coming two years, we’re confident that by continuing to work together we can improve thousands more homes, reduce fuel poverty, lower carbon emissions and leave a lasting positive impact on the communities we serve.” Lovell Renew has also consistently prioritised social value within its programmes by employing a local supply chain and promoting material reuse and recycling. Outside of physical works, the team heavily invested in the community, completing initiatives such as coffee mornings and drop-in days for residents to give feedback, school engagement sessions focused on sustainable construction careers and environmental responsibility and making Christmas donations of selection boxes across the delivery areas. In addition, Lovell Renew has been working with ‘Stop Social Housing Stigma’ – a tenant led campaign that celebrates the value of social housing, acting to breakdown the stereotypes and stigma associated with being a social housing tenant. For more information, visit: https://corporate.lovell.co.uk/lovell-renew Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
CBRE finds buyer for Noble Foods’ production site in multi-million-pound deal
Leading commercial real estate firm, CBRE, has successfully completed the sale of 115,000 sq ft industrial site in a multi-million pound deal on behalf of the seller, Noble Foods. Previously used as an egg-packing facility, the self-contained site features all the necessary facilities for a manufacturing operation including two office buildings, two warehouses, 19 loading bays and additional storage buildings. The site also came with 15.2 acres of vacant land with outline planning permission to build additional warehouses already granted. Based in the heart of Oxfordshire’s industrial hub, the site is adjacent to Lakeside Industrial Estate in rural Witney. It also has excellent connections, with access to both the A40 and A420, making it easy to get to nearby Oxford, only 13 miles away, and beyond. Will Davis, associate director at CBRE, said: “This deal reflects the strong demand for industrial space both in Witney and across wider Oxfordshire. A self-contained site of this size is incredibly rare, especially in such a popular location. The fact it came with outline planning permission for additional warehouses was the cherry on top and made it the perfect site for a business looking to expand its operations.” Will Cadbury, Chief Financial Officerat Noble Foods, said: “When our Witney site became surplus to requirements, we were keen to find the right buyer who would be able to make the site purposeful again. The sale marks the start of an exciting new chapter for the Witney site and we’re grateful to CBRE for their support in structuring this deal.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Mears Builds Record £4.2bn Pipeline Following Major Housing Contract Wins
Mears has strengthened its position as one of the UK’s leading housing maintenance providers after securing more than £1.4 billion of new work during the first half of the year, driving its order book to a record £4.2 billion. The public sector housing specialist continues to expand its long-term maintenance portfolio after a series of major contract awards and renewals, reinforcing confidence in the company’s strategy despite a temporary dip in profits linked to the mobilisation of new contracts. Revenue reached £560 million during the period, while adjusted pre-tax profit stood at £29 million. Although margins eased slightly to 5.2% from 5.6%, the company attributed this to the costs associated with mobilising several significant long-term contracts. Among the largest awards was a landmark 10-year, £450 million contract with Birmingham City Council. Under the agreement, Mears will deliver a comprehensive range of housing services, including responsive repairs, void property works, gas servicing, heating installations and planned maintenance across the authority’s housing stock. The company also secured a further 10-year contract with Rooftop Housing Group worth £150 million, providing repairs and maintenance services to approximately 7,000 homes across South Worcestershire and North Gloucestershire. Alongside these new appointments, Mears successfully retained several key long-standing partnerships, including contracts with Cross Keys Homes, Livin, Leeds City Council, Moat Homes and Thurrock Council. Together, these renewals contributed more than £1 billion of additional work to the company’s expanding pipeline. For the construction and housing sectors, the results underline the continued demand for long-term asset management, planned maintenance and compliance services as housing providers invest in improving existing homes, enhancing building safety and maintaining regulatory standards. Mears also completed the integration of consultancy Pennington Choices during the period, strengthening its expertise across compliance, asset management and building safety services. The acquisition enhances the group’s ability to provide integrated solutions to local authorities and registered housing providers. In line with its strategic focus on housing, the company also completed the sale of its non-core facilities management business for £18 million, allowing it to concentrate resources on its core maintenance and housing services operations. Chief Executive Lucas Critchley said: “Mears has continued to make strong progress against its key strategic objectives.” The company also noted that an intensive two-year programme of rebidding existing contracts has now largely concluded. As a result, its bidding teams are increasingly able to focus on pursuing new opportunities rather than defending existing work, providing further potential for future growth. Looking ahead, Mears has reaffirmed its full-year guidance, forecasting revenue of around £1.04 billion and adjusted pre-tax profit of approximately £51 million. With a record order book, strengthened building safety capabilities and a growing portfolio of long-term maintenance partnerships, Mears appears well positioned to play an increasingly significant role in supporting the management, maintenance and improvement of the UK’s public housing stock. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
listening to customers helps ‘believe housing’ achieve record satisfaction levels
Housing association believe housing has achieved its best ever customer satisfaction results, with feedback helping to shape services and lessons from complaints driving further improvements. The not-for-profit landlord, which owns and manages more than 18,000 homes across the northeast of England, has recorded its highest Tenant Satisfaction Measures results. Overall satisfaction rose from 78% in 2024-25 to 82% in 2025-26, while satisfaction with repairs increased from 76% to 85%. More customers also said they feel safe in their homes, up from 82.3% to 84.9%, and that they are treated fairly and with respect, up from 83.1% to 86.2%. The results reflect the work believe housing has done to listen to customers and act on what they say. But the organisation says there is always more to learn and is continuing to gather insight from customer feedback, comments and complaints. One way it is doing this is through its new Customer Complaints Panel, established in November 2025. The panel brings together customers who want to use their experiences to improve complaint handling, learn from complaints and help ensure the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code is followed. Members have received training on believe housing’s complaints policy, the Code and what good complaint handling looks like in practice. Meeting at least every three months, the panel reviews performance information, explores customer journeys and identifies learning from complaints and feedback. Members will also hear from colleagues across the business to understand how customer insight can help improve services. The panel helps believe housing understand what is working well, where improvements are needed and what actions should be taken next. Louise Taylor, Executive Director of Governance and Strategy at believe housing, said: “These are our best ever Tenant Satisfaction Measures results and they reflect the commitment of colleagues across believe housing to do the right thing for customers every day. “We’re particularly pleased that more customers told us they are treated fairly and with respect. Feedback regularly highlights the professionalism, kindness and commitment of our colleagues, and that’s something everyone across the organisation should be proud of. “But our focus is on continuous improvement. Whether customers tell us we’ve done something well or raise a complaint when we’ve fallen short, every conversation gives us valuable insight. “Customer feedback helps shape services, while the learning we gain through complaints helps us understand where we can do better. “By listening to customers and acting on what they tell us, we can continue to provide healthy homes, a quality service and a better customer experience.” Customer feedback is already helping believe housing improve services, shape policies and communicate more clearly. During 2025/26, customers shared their views through more than 6,000 feedback survey responses, 1,164 Tenant Satisfaction Measures survey responses, consultations, co-design projects, workshops, app and portal testing, and Customer Complaints Panel meetings. The latest Tenant Satisfaction Measures results are available on believe housing’s website at tenant satisfaction measures | believe housing believe housing customers who would like to share their views and help shape services can find out more at get involved | believe housing Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals