Detailed planning approval for Plot B secured

Approval enables Dockside to bring forward new student accommodation, affordable homes and community space. Dockside Canada Water is set to bring to central London a unique and exciting proposition; a new urban quarter surrounded by 130 acres of green and blue space that offers new places to work, eat, drink, live and relax fronting the water’s edge.

The scheme is the commercial gateway to British Land’s 53-acre new town centre in Canada Water – the most significant regeneration in the city for the last 50 years. Art-Invest secured outline planning permission for the masterplan in March 2022. This planning application includes detailed plans for the entire Dockside Canada Water masterplan; Plot A and Plot B, but focusses only on the updated proposals for Plot B. The proposals for Plot A remain unchanged from the detailed planning application approved by Southwark Council in September 2023.

Plot B, designed by international architecture practice tp bennett, comprises two residential-led buildings and will bring forward 742 new student rooms, responding to a clear need in the borough and 75 new affordable homes, with a mix of social rents and intermediate tenures. In line with Art-Invest’s initial proposals, the new community space and significant improvements to the surrounding public realm have been retained and will now come forward.

Plot A which incorporates two iconic buildings; One Dockside and Two Dockside will establish itself as the new workplace hub for London. The buildings deliver over 700,000 sq ft NIA of Grade A, sustainability-led office space that is exceptionally well located on the Rotherhithe Peninsula, next to a Zone 2 transport hub. Moments from the Jubilee Line and London Overground station, it is eight minutes to the City, fifteen minutes to the West End and only a two minute journey to Canary Wharf. Designed by internationally renowned architects, BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group and HWKN Architecture , these landmark buildings will offer occupiers the opportunity to make an impact in a location with authenticity and that prioritises wellness and lifestyle in the workplace; two crucial factors in retaining and attracting top talent.

Integral to Dockside is the transformation of the eastern dock edge. Designed by internationally renowned landscape and garden designer and Chelsea Flower Show gold medallist, Andy Sturgeon, the dock edge will become an important new public focal point for the scheme and the community. Art-Invest is currently progressing detailed designs of the dock edge to bring forward its redevelopment at the same time as Plot A.

Luka Vukotic, Head of Development, Art-Invest Real Estate UK, commented: “Canada Water is one of London’s largest redevelopment projects and it is rapidly taking shape. Dockside plays a crucial role in its development, by bringing exceptional workspace, a high quality residential offer and public realm that has wellbeing for local people and the future workforce at its heart. It is fantastic to secure a positive decision from Southwark’s planning committee as it completes our vision for Dockside Canada Water and allows us to focus on delivery.”

Nenad Manasijevic, Principal Director at tp bennett added: “The Dockside Canada Water development will provide essential student and affordable housing in Southwark while transforming the local area through new public spaces and connections. Working closely with Art-Invest, we have taken a resident-led design approach to Plot B, focusing on how future students, new homeowners and existing residents can live together harmoniously to create a thriving new neighbourhood. This meant better pedestrian routes to and from local transport hubs; a new public garden, greater connections and integration with the surrounding area, and an emphasis on passive-sustainable, enduring design.”