Background information

History

By the early 1990s, Bermondsey Spa was neglected and run down. The area was badly bombed during the war and despite some house building after 1945, the area was left as something of a forgotten backwater. Apart from a few listed properties, the condition of the buildings was mostly poor, with many vacant or even derelict.

By 1999 changes were in place. Construction of the Jubilee Line extension was well underway bringing the West End within 20 minutes reach of Bermondsey, plus the location of Greater London Authority (GLA) headquarters at Tower Bridge promised to place the heart of London's decision making right on the neighbourhood's doorstep.

The masterplan

Southwark Council decided to explore how it could use the land it owned around the Spa Road area and commissioned urban designers to come up with a masterplan that could transform the area into the vibrant neighbourhood it had once been over a century before.

In October 2000, the council adopted the masterplan for what is now called the Bermondsey Spa regeneration area, after full council assembly approved it and with full consultation with local residents. The masterplan sets out the vision and aims of the project, the council and its partners and identifies 15 separate sites for development.

The vision

When all of the sites are complete, residents and visitors will benefit from more than 2,000 new homes, 40 per cent of which will be affordable. There will also be two new health centres, an NHS dental practice and pharmacy, improved youth and play facilities, including two and a half hectares of newly landscaped open space, extra car sharing spaces and cycle parks, as well as new offices and shops.

It's not just the infrastructure that is changing at Bermondsey Spa. One of the council's priorities is to make sure employment goes hand in hand with the regeneration. Following a comprehensive skills audit, new jobs and training opportunities are being created, particularly in the construction industry.  

Partners including the The Hyde Group are also leading outreach work with local schools, as well as with young offenders.

 Awards

Bermondsey Spa was shortlisted for the RICS Awards 2010 in the 'Regeneration' category. Bermondsey Spa won the Mayor's London Planning Awards 'Best New Place to Live' Award 2010 and 'The Best New Regeneration Project' in the Evening Standard's New Homes Award 2010.