Pull to refresh
Logo
What Changed
Following Why Sign Up
Westminster approves £600m Victoria Street office tower under retrofit-first policy

Westminster approves £600m Victoria Street office tower under retrofit-first policy

Built World

3-2 vote clears 258,000 sq ft tower, but the grant still needs the Mayor of London and a Section 106 deal

October 13th, 2026: Committee approves £600m Victoria Street tower

Overview

Updated Oct 23

Westminster City Council's planning sub-committee voted 3-2 on 13 October to approve Meadow Partners' £600 million redevelopment of 10-20 Victoria Street. Chair Rachael Robathan cast the deciding vote for a taller block with about 258,000 sq ft of Grade A offices and 754 sq m of shops and restaurants.

The permission is conditional on the Mayor of London's views and a completed Section 106 agreement, which carries £926,305.80 for carbon-reduction projects. Officers accepted the demolition case under Test 4 of the borough's retrofit-first policy. Labour members voted against, arguing the carbon cost of knocking the buildings down was not justified.

Why it matters

This approval adds rare Grade A office space to central London and sets the precedent for whether Westminster's retrofit-first policy will clear future new-build towers.

Questions about this story

Free account needed to ask — your question is kept and asked for you right after sign-up. Answers are public.

No questions yet — be the first to ask.

Key Indicators

$794M
Project value
Estimated £600m redevelopment cost for the 10-20 Victoria Street scheme.
258,000 sq ft
New office space
Approximately 24,000 sq m of Grade A office floorspace replacing two post-war buildings, plus 754 sq m of retail.
3-2
Committee vote
Planning sub-committee approval split along party lines, with chair Rachael Robathan casting the deciding vote.
13
Storeys
Ground plus 12 upper storeys, with rooftop plant and terraces.
~4M sq ft
Office space lost since 2019
Westminster shed roughly 4 million sq ft of offices, largely via residential conversion, per a Westminster Property Association-Arup report.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Sign up to generate historical perspectives on this story.

Log in Sign Up

People Involved

RR
Rachael Robathan
Chair, Westminster City Council planning sub-committee
Cast the deciding vote for approval
NB
Nafsika Butler-Thalassis
Labour councillor, Westminster planning sub-committee
Voted against the scheme
 Guy Bransby
Guy Bransby
Partner and head of central London planning, Montagu Evans
Planning consultant for the project

Organizations Involved

Meadow Partners
Meadow Partners
Real estate investment manager
Developer of the 10-20 Victoria Street scheme

Real estate investment manager and developer behind the 10-20 Victoria Street redevelopment, which it filed through Healey Development (Victoria Street) Limited.
PC
Piercy & Company
Architecture practice
Designer of the approved scheme

Architecture practice that designed the 13-storey Victoria Street scheme, using natural limestone and green granite.
Westminster City Council
Westminster City Council
Local government authority
Planning authority that granted permission

Borough council whose planning sub-committee approved the redevelopment under its 'retrofit first, not retrofit only' policy.

Timeline

2026 October 2026

3 events Latest: October 13th, 2026 · 4 weeks ago

  1. Committee approves £600m Victoria Street tower

    Latest Planning Decision

    Westminster's planning sub-committee votes 3-2 to approve the redevelopment, with chair Rachael Robathan casting the deciding vote. The grant is conditional on the Mayor of London's views and a Section 106 agreement that includes £926,305.80 for climate and carbon-reduction projects.

  2. Application registered for 10-20 Victoria Street

    Application

    Meadow Partners files a full planning application with Westminster City Council to demolish two post-war buildings and build a 13-storey office-led scheme.

  3. WPA-Arup report documents office space loss

    Report

    Westminster Property Association and Arup find the borough lost nearly 4 million sq ft of office space since 2019, mostly to residential conversion.

Scenarios

1

Meadow Partners appoints contractor and construction begins

Likely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Building magazine, which reported contractors are closing in on a £150m construction contract

Meadow Partners names a main contractor and starts demolition and construction, likely progressing faster if a tenant pre-lets space. The Building report said contractors were already circling the roughly £150m job, so appointment could come within months.

2

Major occupier pre-lets space at Victoria Street

Possible Resolves by Q2 2028

Discussed by: Property analysts quoted in the realtytoday.com report, noting tenants with lease expiries in 2028-2030 may weigh the scheme

A large office tenant signs a pre-let ahead of completion, signaling market confidence and locking in revenue. The report noted pre-let activity typically accelerates before a building is ready, so a deal could surface as delivery nears in the late 2020s.

3

Legal challenge seeks to quash the permission

Unlikely Resolves by Nov 30, 2026

Discussed by: Standard six-week judicial review window under UK planning law

A third party files for judicial review to overturn the permission, citing the carbon cost of demolition. Any statutory challenge must come within six weeks of the decision. The tight 3-2 vote and the divisive retrofit-first debate make a challenge conceivable, though no party has signaled one.

4

Mayor of London blocks or calls in the Victoria Street permission

Unlikely Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: Westminster's own planning report, which made the grant subject to the Mayor's views

Westminster granted permission subject to the Mayor of London's views. City Hall can let the decision stand, direct a refusal, or take the application over for a public hearing. A mayoral intervention would put the scheme back in front of a panel before any demolition starts.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

May 2013

Office-to-residential permitted development rights (2013)

The UK government introduced permitted development rights letting office buildings convert to residential use without full planning permission, intended to speed housing delivery.

Then

Conversions surged, particularly in London, turning commercial floorspace into flats.

Now

Westminster lost nearly 4 million sq ft of office space since 2019, much attributed to residential conversion, worsening the Grade A supply squeeze.

Why this matters now

This supply drain is the backdrop for the Victoria Street scheme, which adds Grade A office space to a borough that has been losing it.

2007-2014

20 Fenchurch Street 'Walkie Talkie' (2007-2014)

Land Securities' 160-metre tower at 20 Fenchurch Street was approved in 2007, then stalled when the financial crisis hit before finally opening in 2014.

Then

New London office tower construction froze during the recession and resumed only slowly.

Now

The cycle shows planning approval does not guarantee timely delivery; schemes can sit for years before construction starts.

Why this matters now

The Victoria Street project is expected to take three to five years from approval to completion, so its delivery depends on market conditions holding through the late 2020s.

Sources

(9)
+3
World Construction Network Realty Today Building Design Westminster Property Association Westminster City Council Building Buildington Open Council Network Green Street News