Client story

JLL appointed as advisor to British Land for £3.3 billion master redevelopment plan

Once complete, this new mixed-use town centre will bring significant economic growth to the community

Location

Canada Water, Central London

Value

£4bn

Size

53 acres

The JLL team have been great fun to work alongside and are actively ensuring that a world class destination is created at Canada Water. They are professional, informed and are truly trusted advisors, providing a high standard of service throughout their tenure working on the project.

Roger Madelin CBE, Joint Head of Canada Water, British Land
Challenge

Our client, British Land, embarked on a mission to build a new urban centre for Canada Water, transforming the 53 acre Central London location. The development is focused on sustainability and health and will provide new office, residential, retail and leisure space; delivering a positive long-term contribution to London, Southwark and local life. In 2015, JLL was appointed as British Land’s strategic advisor for the Canada Water development. Our role has evolved over time but involves a holistic research and market-based approach to placemaking drawing upon the demand drivers for each use class, and the different components necessary for residential, office, retail, leisure and community sectors. We ensure that best practice and new trends and insights are at the centre of all advice provided.

Solution

JLL’s Strategic Development Consulting (SDC) team lead this instruction, providing a holistic view across all JLL areas of specialism and acting as a single point of contact for the client. We provided market research and data-based insights on what the future demographics will look like, based on who will most likely be living, working, studying and playing at Canada Water. This research was underpinned by sustainability and health and wellbeing. We created specific market reports to capture occupier demand, rents, yields, future supply, competitive position, target occupier profile, occupation trends and lease terms. These outputs contributed to British Land’s decisions on development mix and quantum of desirable space, which would inform the planning permission that was secured in May 2019 (detailed consent for the first three buildings and outline across the wider site). We have helped the client over the last 6-years of the project advising on sustainability, phasing, market positioning and competition differentiation, future occupier requirements and post-COVID-19 implications and international best practice.

The JLL team have provided comprehensive advice across all use classes to ensure that Canada Water will provide a truly mixed-use and future proofed development.

Emma Cariaga, Joint Head of Canada Water Development and Head of Residential, British Land
Result

The reports generated by JLL, which included a Global Exemplar Developments study to help British Land understand international best practices, helped to inform the masterplan for Canada Water. We leveraged our expertise in SDC and research, while utilising our specialist agency teams, to advise the client on developing a large land holding into a mixed-use destination. The masterplan includes 3,000 new homes, of which 35% will be affordable housing; c. 2,000,000 sq. ft. of office space; as well as 1,000,000 sq. ft. of retail, with a leisure, community and infrastructure provision alongside significant new public realm. At least 35% of the master plan will be devoted to public open space, and British Land has committed to a strategy that reduces carbon emissions, now and in the future. The strategic advisor role led by SDC is still ongoing and has evolved over time to meet the client’s ever-changing needs due to the evolving stage of the project, regulation changes, market trends and the pandemic. JLL’s Office agency team are instructed to lease the new space and the Residential agency team is instructed to sell the new homes.

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