Developer BGO has submitted plans for a £750m mixed-use healthcare and research campus in Whitechapel, east London.
The proposed scheme, designed by PLP Architecture and backed by Barts Health NHS Trust, aims to support key workers and relieve pressure on clinical services at the nearby Royal London Hospital.
The development is part of the newly announced Barts Life Sciences Cluster and could contribute £1bn a year to the UK economy, according to its promoters.
Plans cover a 64,427 square metre research and outpatient facility alongside five new residential buildings and refurbished terraces.
Half of the homes will be for affordable social rent, with 167 units allocated to key workers on capped salaries.
A further 61 homes will be for private sale.
The commercial element will include flexible workspace for health technology, diagnostics, artificial intelligence and robotics firms. Ten per cent of this space will be let at affordable rates.
Public realm works are designed to reconnect the area’s historic street pattern.
A 275-metre-long landscaped corridor will restore a pedestrian route between Walden Street and Philpot Street, delivering 3,600 square metres of accessible gardens and amenity space planted with 200 trees.
PLP Architecture is leading the design, supported by dMFK, DSDHA and BD Landscape Architects.
The wider project team includes Avison Young, Sweco, AKT II, DP9 and GIA.
The main building will feature a publicly accessible foyer, a café and an 800 square metre exhibition and events space, intended to showcase medical innovation.
Rooftop amenities will include a terrace with panoramic views, a running track and a sports pitch.
The development would create 1,325 jobs.
A residential element will include a mix of private apartments, shared living and family-sized homes.
The project is part of a broader regeneration plan for the Whitechapel Estate.
Barts Health NHS Trust group chief executive Shane DeGaris said the scheme would accelerate the development of clinical research “into life-changing clinical practices and products for our patients”.
Source: BGO/PLP Architecture announcement
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Ben Vogel