Iceni Projects | A Companywide Showcase of our Projects and Services
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“The judges said this entry was a breath of fresh air to read. Iceni stood out as different, creative, colourful and innovative. They’ve not been afraid to break away from the mould and be themselves, having developed their own successful and imaginative approach to clients and staff offering above and beyond what is expected from a large consultancy.
“The judges were especially impressed by Iceni’s tribal ethos, in the sense that they have created a culture which is staff focused and highlights the importance of their wellbeing above all else.”
RTPI Awards for Planning Excellence 2021
An Introduction to Iceni Projects A Multi-skilled Consultancy
Formed in 2005, Iceni is now the market leader and preferred consultancy for a fast-growing number of clients. From our offices in Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, and Manchester, we deliver on a variety of schemes across the UK.
We have always sought to provide the “skills of a planner with the instincts of a developer”. The technical specialisms that the company hold have widened, but this fundamental objective remains the same. We are committed to putting our client’s interests first – and providing them with the tools to significantly improve their performance.
We achieve this by knowing our tradecraft –the technical skills that come through years of education and on-the- job experience that is recognised by professional accreditation. But it is also daring to be different; being proactive and thinking strategically. Our client relationships are built on trust, togetherness, enthusiasm, and a courage to challenge, where appropriate.
We are able to provide specialist advice in the fields of archaeology; built heritage and townscape; delivery; design; economics; EIA management; engagement; planning; sustainable development and transport. Our team are talented, relentless, intelligent, bold and experienced. Individually or collectively, you’ll know when you’re with Iceni Projects.
To Iceni, thinking strategically is what we fundamentally believe to be the right way of doing things; to assess needs, evaluate constraints and maximise opportunities. It’s about having a strategic vision for a site, often looking beyond the immediate constraint of development management policies, and utilising a diverse range of skills to deliver large scale infrastructure and development projects.
We have the expertise to deliver strategic planning at a sub-regional and local level, advising local authorities on evidence and strategy development across England. Our services include advising local authorities on aligning their evidence on housing need and economic growth, to deliver a collaborative approach to strategic planning.
Ian Anderson Chief Executive
Your Strategic Adviser
Birmingham
The Colmore Building 20 Colmore Circus Birmingham, B4 6AT T: 0121 262 4148
Edinburgh 14-18 Hill Street
Edinburgh, EH2 3JZ T: 0131 370 3486
Glasgow
201 West George Street, Glasgow, G2 2LW T: 0141 465 4996
London Da Vinci House 44 Saffron Hill, London, EC1N 8FH T: 020 3640 8508
Manchester Dalton Place 29 John Dalton Street, Manchester, M2 6FW T: 0161 509 2840
The Team Structure of Iceni
Ian Anderson Chief Executive
Andrew Gale Chief Operating Officer
James Bompas Director | Business Devt. & Strategic Planning
ARCHAEOLOGY
Claire Cogar Director
BUILT HERITAGE & TOWNSCAPE
Laurie Handcock Director
Nick Walker Director
DESIGN
Jonathan Stewart Director
Paul Drew Director
ECONOMICS
Nick Ireland Director
Matt Kinghan Director
Paul McColgan Director
ENGAGEMENT & PLACE
Gemma Gallant Director
Philippa Curran Director
IMPACT MANAGEMENT
James Jaulim Director
LANDSCAPE
Silke Gruner Director
PLANNING
Callum Fraser Director
Chris Jones Director
Kieron Hodgson Director
Leona Hannify Director
Lewis Westhoff Director
Lorna O’Carroll Director
Nick Grant Director
Simon Fowler Director
TRANSPORT
Clive Burbridge Director
Gary Mappin Director
Ian Gallacher Director
Ian Mayhead Director
James Waterhouse Director
Jamie Sullivan Director
John Mumby Director
Fred Peters Director
Mike England Director
Rob Amey Director
Finding You a Site.
Our business is pretty simple when you break it down. We devote our working lives to helping our clients succeed and we do this by consistently providing information and advice of a high commercial value.
Typically this involves securing planning permissions at the planning application stage. But we like to get our hands dirty long before that point. In fact, we want to be involved right from the get-go. We’re an unashamed bunch of commercially astute property advisers and it is ingrained in our DNA to be unearthing new opportunities for our clients. And we’d like to think we’re rather good at doing this.
Opportunities are often found in the most unexpected places. We may be sat in the most tedious of planning committee meetings when an opportunity site might hit us square in the face. Or thumbing our way through a Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment and notice that the best piece of land is not being promoted. It can happen when we’re reviewing the Government’s emerging planning guidance and notice that there is a whole new business model just waiting for one of our clients to run with. The reality is that we are experts in a sector that on the face of it does so much to restrict opportunities. But by understanding that system and being at the forefront of the changes and tweaks to that system, we are perfectly placed to navigate the minefield in order to use the planning system to identify new ventures and opportunities.
So if you’re interested in a particular location or region and want some help finding the right site, then give us a call or better still, come in and meet us so that we can better understand your business and the types of opportunity you are looking for.
It Starts with Iceni Place.
Sites don’t start with, and aren’t defined by, planning policy. They’re defined by people. And people bring a melting pot of ideas and opinions.
Not everyone will necessarily share the view that a site needs developing, regenerating or renewal, especially in areas undergoing massive amounts of change or those where nothing has happened despite the will to see it happen.
It is within this context that it has never been more important to recognise and understand that sites are pieces of land that people have memories about; that they cherish or loath, visit regularly or have only over seen from the top deck of a bus. And that too often, people feel side-lined from where they have lived, worked and played, and powerless in how it is changing.
Of course, some people may have no opinion about these sites or their surroundings, whilst others may dare to dream as to what they could become in the future – and whether there’s room for them within it.
They are sites that often mean more to people than an abstract red line on an OS plan, where physical and social barriers override site boundaries. Where people have a connection to their incidental bit of city, town or village they call home. They have a past, they have a present and a future. Just like people.
Iceni Place delivers an approach that welcomes all of these views, fears, hopes and dreams into a collaborative process built on listening. It starts with people, asking “What does success look like to you?” and ends with a legacy of better places.
Forward Thinking.
Iceni Futures stands at the forefront of the planning industry by seeking to understand and predict how places will function in the future.
The Iceni Futures team was set up in response to the rapidly changing world and the acknowledgment that more than ever, we need to work smarter and create futureproofed and sustainable development.
The team’s role is to assess, predict and influence change across the development industry. In practice that means exploring how places and people will function in the future, analysing existing barriers and providing strategic advice which aligns with client’s goals and aspirations to ensure development is fit for the future.
The team doesn’t claim to be experts in every new discipline or product, but they understand the existing barriers and outdated development processes that persist across the industry and the importance of working innovatively and smarter to deliver client visions and change that actually works.
It’s understood that each client will need tailored advice and the Futures team look to work collaboratively to provide advice which is tailored to a specific site, company strategy or product.
Fundamentally, if you’re looking to protect against or capitalise on the changing world, your project should start with Futures.
A Digital Consultancy.
We’re technologically astute. We’re constantly forecasting and adapting, developing and utilising new technologies to overcome new challenges, particularly in the wake of the global Covid-19 crisis.
iSite
iSite pulls together a number of services to enable the promoter of a project – but equally the respective consultant, local authority, consultee, local community and wider interested party – to gain the knowledge and understanding of a site or location that historically has only been possible from an in-depth site visit.
Moreover, many projects are of the size and scale that even a physical site visit renders difficult to comprehend.
The key focus of iSite is to provide an intelligent digital design and consultation tool. This incorporates the use of drone photography, 360° camerawork (think Google Street View for buildings), interactive, virtual consultation halls and project web sites that can pool together all of the information for effective file management and sharing. So whether you need to initiate an initial site survey appraisal, team site visit, pre-application meeting, public consultation event or committee presentation, iSite can help.
iSite wont be for everyone. We understand that. But if you are looking for cost-effective ways to progress with your proposals, it could be the answer.
GIS
We often think of GIS as something we learnt at school or university, and never to be applied to the “real world”. The reality could not be further from the truth. We are consistently using mapping data; whether it be shopping online; using our smartphones to get us from A to B, or reviewing a site via Google Earth.
Iceni Projects has experience of working on largescale data mapping and has been working with partners to digitise the plan-making system in England and Wales. The digitisation of these planning datasets makes it possible to run multiple queries and, when layered with other datasets, can truly provide a competitive advantage. By applying a variety of search criteria the possibilities are endless, in terms of site identification; site sifting and site-specific constraint analysis.
Big data means getting to the core message. Fast. It is not uncommon for us to process hundreds of thousands of sites until we have a manageable number of shortlisted results. Iceni Projects is uniquely placed to interpret this information. We also use 3D mapping data to communicate the impact of our projects. Whether it be testing the height, scale and massing of a building. We can speed up the design process; help you to save money on modelling or share information with key decision makers.
It’s Time to Act.
Sustainability needs real leadership. It needs to be woven through the fabric of the feasibility, design, planning, construction, handover and operational project phases, considering the impact of the building throughout its lifetime.
Climate Emergency
The whole point of an ‘emergency’ is that something gets done now. Yet the mass declarations of ‘climate emergency’ have been followed up with nothing more than rhetoric and vague targets kicked a long way down the road. Nearly 90 councils have passed climate emergency motions so far and last month, the UK Parliament followed suit. But nothing has changed in the day-to-day operations of local planning authorities, with no immediate action to respond to the alleged ‘emergency’. Built environment carbon emissions are still a long way down the priority list for most planning departments.
Given the pace at which Local Plans progress, it is unlikely that any new planning policies will emerge based on the climate emergency declarations within the next five years as a minimum. By this time, the patient may be beyond saving. The IPCC estimates that unless significant action is taken before 2030, it will be too late to stop runaway climate change. Put simply, we have to start cutting emissions now to give us a fighting chance of staying below the recommended 1.5°C global temperature rise.
For the vast majority of housebuilders, energy costs and carbon emissions have no impact on sales values. Therefore, there are no incentives to
reduce building emissions beyond that mandated by either Building Regulations or planning policy. We cannot rely on the market to transform itself.
Sustainable Development Scorecard
The updated 2018 National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) retains a presumption in favour of sustainable development’. However, there is no clear-cut, NPPF-based assessment criteria to consider a site or project’s sustainable development credentials, making current assessment processes both tricky and subjective.
Chaired by former planning minister, Nick Raynsford, the Sustainable Development Commission was set up to address this recognised issue with our planning system. Made up of a balanced cross-section of industry professionals, the Commission has debated the issues and found solutions, culminating in the creation of the Sustainable Development Scorecard.
You can watch a video with more detail on the Commission and background to the Scorecard here: https://vimeo.com/244731848
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Our Specialist Teams.
Archaeology
Development has the potential to affect buried heritage assets, whether these are previously known or yet to be discovered. Identifying their significance and the extent to which the project might affect them is crucial in the development process. The sooner the archaeologist is on board, the sooner the scope of the archaeological work can be determined, negotiated, and managed. Iceni understands this. We are committed to adopting a businessled, focused approach to ensure archaeology remains part of the planning process for the good of our clients, the archaeology and society at large. Cradle to grave, you might say.
Built Heritage and Townscape
Heritage is all around us, and the chances are that if you have a site, it will be within a historic environment. The cobblestones of heritage may sometimes feel like they are there to cause a trip, but good advice can help a project to proceed on smooth York stone paving. We provide advice on the historic and built environment at all stages, from project inception to completion. Our aim is to get the best possible results for our clients and stakeholders, giving realistic and pragmatic, yet creative and commercial, guidance, that will stand the test of time.
Design
Our talented team brings together expertise in spatial planning and design to deliver projects on an extensive range of scales. From the sensitive extension of existing neighbourhoods, through to the masterplanning of new villages and towns. Our approach ensures that all factors are properly considered in design strategies in order to create socially, economically and environmentally sustainable and enduring developments.
Economics
Economics is Iceni’s newest specialist team. The interface between our daily lives, the economy and property markets both residential and commercial has never been more important. We need to rejuvenate our high streets, facilitate growth in digital and e-commerce, make our economies resilient and deliver homes for the right people in the right places. Iceni understands interactions between employment, demographics and property markets and has a national capability in providing specialist advice to support plan making, site promotion and making the case for development and infrastructure.
Engagement
We put stakeholder engagement, public consultation and communications strategies at the heart of what we do to support the creation of great places. Our team have direct experience of development, planning, community development, design and the political process. We have a track record of helping our clients create value through effective and meaningful dialogue with local communities, and we’re proud of the stakeholder relations that we’ve made, and that we keep.
Futures
We provide strategic advice which is tailored to your site, company strategy or product. Our advice is bespoke in terms of output, whether it be a focus on climate change, new ways of living and building, new legislation, health and wellbeing or technological advancements, the Futures team can provide customised solutions.
Transport
Buses and bikes, roads and roundabouts, cars and car parks, junctions and jargon. Controversies over traffic and parking are part of community life. Transport Planning is an integral part of development. Getting the right transport advice early on can make or break a development opportunity. Rigorous, expert advice also improve a project’s environmental and economic value, and increase its prospects of being granted planning permission.
Landscape
The clear and timely consideration of potential landscape and visual constraints to development is key to building a strong planning case, be it for a small-scale residential development or a strategic new settlement. We provide clear landscape and visual advice and input into development proposals of all scales and over a range of sectors, while also producing the Landscape and Visual Impact Assessments, Landscape Strategy plans and other Landscape studies which may be required to achieve a planning permission.
The Planning Application.
Broadly speaking, there are two types of planning application.
Our Urban Teams are at the sharp end of an everevolving policy drive to maximise the contribution of previously developed land in urban areas. We have developed an enviable reputation for being tactically astute in reacting to policy changes that open opportunities, and maximise the value of our clients’ property interests, at every level.
We love nothing more than a complex, constrained site. It’s what gets us out of bed in the morning, using our commercial edge and attention to detail to evaluate constraints, and develop a vision that looks beyond the present to unlock potential.
Viability and timely delivery are key for any project. We bring together a team of sector specialists to programme and implement a strategy step-by step. Drawing on technical expertise and through community / stakeholder engagement to influence decision makers, we have developed a reputation for success on a wide range of urban projects. From applications for Estate Renewal, major residential and BtR schemes, to single dwellings and householder applications. From applications for commercial/industrial units, complex urban regeneration and large-scale mixed-use schemes, to fine grain or detailed development control, our approach is the same.
Regardless of project size, the common ‘thread’ being our expert knowledge of the planning system itself, and our ability to maximise the value of our clients’ property assets.
To Iceni, strategic planning is simple. It’s what we fundamentally believe to be the right way of doing things; to assess needs, evaluate constraints and maximise opportunities. It’s far from the dusty misconception of bookish planners working in the corner of office last decorated in the 1970’s; it’s about having a strategic vision for opportunities, looking beyond the throttling constraint of development management policies, and utilising a diverse range of skills to deliver large scale infrastructure and development projects to a client’s commercial advantage.
Strategic planning projects are diverse, yet they have numerous common threads. It’s not their size, but the scale of ambition that drives them. It’s the importance of a depth of understanding of the planning system, its driving principles and its processes. It’s about community engagement. It’s about influence in the seats of power. It’s about the understanding of development viability. It’s about an understanding of technical disciplines. It’s about forging relationships between landowners, developers, delivery agencies, authorities and national and local stakeholders. It’s about harnessing the dynamics of a site - and an area.
Strategic.
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Sectors we Work in.
Our Specialist Services.
Environmental Impact Management
The impact that development can have on the surrounding environment is often a key factor in the decision making of large planning applications. Iceni Projects has a team of expert people who can delivery robust impact assessments that will stand up to this scrutiny.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an integral part of the planning process, we have a team of competent expert planners who can provide a range of commercially focused assessments, which deliver quality, viable and realistic results. The EIA process has a reputation for being complex and confusing, however, if managed well it offers an opportunity to de-risk development and highlight the benefits that a development can bring.
Our experienced co-ordinators use their expertise to manage and deliver all stages of the EIA process. We provide screening advice on whether formal EIA is required, scoping analysis to determine likely significant impacts and manage the EIA process to produce the Environmental Statement (ES). The team also prepares Socio-Economic and Health Impact Assessments.
Our EIA experts are recognised Practitioner members of the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA).
Economics
Development plays a critical role in our economy and is central to raising both productivity, living standards and quality of place. We are a trusted advisor to the private and public sector at the interface of property markets, economics and planning, from promotion and application to Local Plan evidence and expert witness. We have been instrumental in drawing down major funding from government to support the implementation of major schemes. Our core services cover:
Economic impact assessment and development case making
Social value assessment
Commercial property market assessment
Employment land evidence
Employment, skills and training strategies
Economic development advice
Business case development and funding bid support, including HM Treasury Green Book Business Cases
Spatial data analytics
Housing Need
The needs case and extent to which this is being met can be of central importance to the promotion of development. Our in-depth expertise in this area is geared at influencing thinking and opening up opportunities. This includes:
Articulating the compelling case for different forms of development from affordable housing to self-build, build-to-rent and retirement living;
In-depth research appraising the interaction between housing provision and economic growth and constructing the case for growth in some of the UK’s most economically dynamic areas;
Interrogating land supply, both for residential and commercial schemes, and justifying this in examination and inquiry settings.
Expert Witness
Our focus is to negotiate consents where others would often need to go to appeal. We achieve this by developing strong relationships with key stakeholders – planning officers, the local community, statutory consultees and local politicians – but cases inevitably arise where negotiation alone is unable to persuade all parties in the decision-making process. We also embrace the qualities of our work - our strategic advice and submissions are capable of scrutiny at appeal.
We treat the appeal process as the last resort. As the last resort, we treat it with a personal and real commitment. We believe this is critical for an expert witness.
We have a deep understanding of the planning framework within which we work, meaning we are able to add value even in the most testing of cases. Each stage in the appeal process is critical – from the tactical advice leading to the submission of an appeal, through the production of the evidence and negotiation of the Statement of Common Ground, to giving evidence.
St Giles Circus
Consolidated
Developments
As part of its ongoing work for Consolidated Developments, Iceni obtained a resolution to grant planning permission from Camden Council in March 2016 for the latest set of amendments to the approved £90m St Giles Circus development in the West End, alongside a number of new planning permissions and listed building consents for the development of the site. Designed by architects Orms, the revised scheme includes the delivery of two new primary street buildings on St Giles High Street, Andrew Borde St and Charing Cross Road, as well as the refurbishment of two listed buildings on Denmark Place.
The larger of the two new buildings, which will total 9,290 sqm, includes a ground-breaking urban gallery which will provide a publicly accessible curated space incorporating 1,800 sqm of digital screens. The urban gallery will be used for a combination of brand launches, retail, advertising and screenings and will be operated in conjunction with a 2,000 capacity music and events venue contained within a 2,800 sqm basement box underneath the site. The smaller building, which will total 4,650 sqm, will include a mix of retail, leisure, hotel and office use, with rooftop restaurants and bars.
Incorporating the music heritage of Denmark Street, St Giles Circus is a culturally significant site set to benefit from the £1bn transformation of Tottenham Court Road station and the arrival of Crossrail.
Holland Park, Glasgow
MODA Living
Iceni Projects are providing strategic planning consultancy services to support Moda Living in the redevelopment of the former Strathclyde police headquarters in Glasgow’s City Centre. The site itself occupies an entire city block in this prominent location. The proposed development includes 433 PRS apartments with associated amenities, underground car parking as well as useable outdoor space including roof terraces and a public courtyard.
Iceni Projects led the collation of the planning application submission which included a number of technical studies given the sensitive urban location on the outskirts of a conservation area and in close proximity to Category A listed buildings.
Due to the scale of the project, it was deemed a “major” development under the relevant Regulations and the statutory 12-week pre-application period applied. Throughout this process, Iceni Projects ensured the pre-application stage aligned with the requirements of the Regulations and included the organisation of the main public consultation exhibition as well as numerous meetings with key stakeholders and the city council to ensure a compliant submission.
As PRS is relatively new to the Glasgow market, one of the key roles of the Scotland planning team was to negotiate the city council’s planning policy which does not account for PRS development. Therefore, the team led the discussions with the city council to ensure the necessary design elements were retained to ensure the viability of the proposal. Such issues included negotiation of amenity space, single / dual aspect ratios, car parking as well as apartment size requirements.
Greenford, Ealing
Greystar
Iceni was instructed by Greystar to lead the preparation of a detailed application at the former GSK headquarters and former Sunblest bakery site in the London Borough of Ealing.
This application obtained approval for a residentialled mix of uses including: 1,965 new homes (including an element of affordable housing); 21,443 sqm of flexible commercial and community floorspace in use classes A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, B1, D1 and / or D2, a new two-form entry primary school, new pedestrian bridge across the canal, car and cycle parking, landscaping and associated works. Iceni has coordinated the planning application submission, including the Environmental Impact Assessment. The application was submitted in September 2016 following engagement with the local community, Council and GLA and approved at Committee in March 2017.
Iceni continues to act through the construction process with regards to the necessary planning conditions to enable prompt delivery on site, and most recently obtained approval of a Minor Material Amendment for an additional 153 homes enabled by, and helping to facilitate, a modular build.
Abbey Road, Barking
EcoWorld
On behalf of EcoWorld (formerly known as be:here), Iceni Planning, together with Iceni Heritage, Transport and Engagement, were instructed to prepare and submit an application for 597 new homes for private rent. The development comprised four interlinked buildings of between 6 and 15 storeys in height, together with circa. 500 sq. m of flexible commercial floorspace, located adjacent to the River Roding in Barking.
Working closely with the appointed project team, Iceni undertook thorough pre-application discussions with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, the GLA, Historic England, TfL and local stakeholders, to ensure the resulting planning application was determined promptly.
During the determination period, Iceni negotiated with the Greater London Authority in respect of affordable housing, highways matters, cycle parking and the London Plan housing standards. These matters would have proved restrictive to the applicants model for build to rent accommodation, however the negotiations were successfully completed well within the statutory 13-week determination period.
The application was heard by LBBD Planning Committee in April 2016 and planning permission granted in December that year. Work has now commenced on-site, with the first homes forecast to be available in 2020.
Arena Essex, Thurrock London Strategic Land
Iceni Projects were instructed in late 2017 to submit a hybrid planning application for up to 2,500 dwellings; a new lido with ancillary café; community pavilion; mountain bike / pump track; primary school; convenience retail store; open space and transport upgrades. This planning application was submitted in November 2018.
The site is extremely challenging from a technical perspective and has a very large number of planning constraints. For this reason, the site has historically stalled, notwithstanding a single-issue review as part of the former Regional Spatial Strategy that identified the site as being well-placed to support growth around Lakeside Shopping Centre. These constraints include: Green Belt; existing uses (motorsport circuit); overhead pylons; protected cudweed; HSE consultation zones; being within an air quality management area; a susceptibility to noise from the A13 dual carriageway and M25 motorway; being in an area prone to highway blockages and as a former quarry site there are also significant topographical challenges.
In responding to the above, Iceni Projects prepared a Planning Performance Agreement (PPA) that responded to the number and breadth of statutory and non-statutory consultees. This PPA was supported by Thurrock Council as the Local Planning Authority and is now being used as the basis for all PPAs in the Borough.
Iceni Projects advised on planning; impact management and sustainable development (Futures).
West Horndon Extension
West Horndon is a very special location with compelling characteristics of a new town.
It has an existing railway station that provides a direct link into Fenchurch Street, London in circa 28 minutes via C2C, together with wider access to Thurrock and Brentwood’s urban area. It has good road connections, with the A127, A128 and M25 nearby.
It benefits from the majority of the land being in one principal ownership, and a local authority that recognises the need for development. West Horndon is on London’s doorstep, but not reliant on the City for employment. Thurrock has the greatest potential for employment of any borough outside of London with DP World, Thames Enterprise Park and Port Tilbury in the Borough. And moreover, the longstanding community on the Brentwood side of the railway line will form an integral part of what we aim to achieve, where people are proud to call West Horndon their home.
However, EASL’s vision goes far beyond this. We passionately believe that it is possible to create an exceptional place, that is financially viable, contributes to the provision of infrastructure; delivers a positive return to our landowners, and ongoing benefits to the local authority and community it will come to serve. We shall achieve these objectives by applying good masterplanning and prudent asset management and development. West Horndon is a project for the long term. It takes a company with an 60 year heritage to understand that.
Former Nailstone Colliery
Curtis Hall
Iceni is providing strategic planning advice to Curtis Hall on the remediation and redevelopment of the 143-hectare site, known as the former Nailstone Colliery.
The site is located cross-boundary between Hinckley and Bosworth Council, with the remainder in North West Leicestershire.
The proposals comprise approximately 100,000 sqm of B8 and B1 floorspace, and the economic uplift in the site value will enable the restoration of the former Colliery with the creation of a country park, with ecological enhancement and public access managed together.
Iceni, working alongside the wider Design Team, secured approval for the reserved matters in 2015. Enabling work commenced on site in Spring 2016 following approval of the pre-commencement conditions for Phase one, and Iceni is continuing to work alongside the Design Team to ensure subsequent phases can be implemented in the near future and to ensure appropriate access arrangements can be made.
Iceni continues to act on behalf of the landowner to look after their interests whilst the prospective occupier proceeds with the development.
Ford Dunton, Basildon
Ford
The Ford Dunton Technical Centre is one of the largest automotive Research and Development facilities in Europe comprising c.100 hectares of land. It is the global centre for Ford’s engine, transmission, and commercial vehicle engineering comprising a critical employment site within Basildon, Essex.
Iceni Projects (Planning and Transport) are Ford’s retained advisors in helping to support the site’s long-term growth and expansion. This includes securing several planning permissions for additional and associated employment facilities across the Site – including offices, a day nursey and various extensions/modifications to existing buildings on site for Ford employees. Iceni are also actively engaged in the Local Plan process with Basildon Borough Council, in promoting the long-term economic function of the site and enhancing value for Ford through the planning process.
Illuminated River
Rothschild Foundation
Incorporating 15 bridges, from Albert Bridge to Tower Bridge, once complete Illuminated River will be the longest public art commission in the world at 2.5 miles in length, along 4.5 nautical miles of the River Thames.
Iceni provided all pre-application public consultation and stakeholder engagement for the project, delivering 18 dropin exhibitions and hosting over 60 stakeholder meetings across the 7 London boroughs that the project spans.
Working closely with Leo Villareal (artist) and Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands (architects), Iceni have delivered activities that have involved local walking, running, and amenity groups, as well as targeted events for river users, commuters, residents, local young people and others.
Iceni continue to support the Illuminated River Foundation throughout the determination period on the 29 planning applications and 18 listed building consents, presenting to committee members and continuing to engage community stakeholders. Despite the scale and impact of the project, letters of support have outweighed those expressing concern during the statutory consultation period on the applications. Ward councillors and MPs have been particularly supportive.
“Iceni have played a key role in turning the Illuminated River vision into a reality. From thoughtful community consultation to stakeholder engagement, Iceni have always gone above and beyond, generating ideas, developing strong external relationships and supporting the project team every step of the way.”
Sarah Gaventa, The Illuminated River Foundation
Centre for Music
Barbican
The vision for the Centre for Music is to develop a world-class concert venue for performance and education to inspire a new generation with a love of music.
The plans include a 2000-seat auditorium, as well as other performance spaces, rehearsal rooms, education facilities, and four storeys of commercial space.
Still in it’s early stages, Iceni have been brought on board, to use their expertise to advise and shape the brief of the project, ensuring this London cultural icon understands and incorporates the needs of the surrounding the community, is engaging and welcoming to all.
Middlesex Annex
University College Hospital
Iceni Archaeology were appointed to the design team for the Middlesex Hospital Annex development in Camden in 2019. The development proposals include the refurbishment of the Grade II listed Workhouse along with the redevelopment of the remainder of the site, to provide a mixed-use development comprising 50 residential units and commercial space along with an increase extent of basement to incorporate 6 MRI scanners.
The scope of the archaeological excavation on site was designed by Iceni pursuant to a planning condition to mitigate the impact of the development on the Workhouse Burial ground. The excavation works were designed in consultation with the project architects (Llewelyn Davies), engineers (AECOM), the principal contractors (Ark Build PLC for the Workhouse and Morgan Sindall for the rear of the site) and Historic England.
The procurement process, project/programme management and the cost consultancy for the archaeological work is currently being undertaken by Iceni on behalf of the client UCLH Charity. The delivery of the archaeological site works is currently on time and under budget, supporting the prompt continuation of the construction and the provision of housing and health services. Over 750 burials have been excavated across the site to date with excavation exceeding a depth of 4m below ground level.
BT Murrayfield Scottish Rugby Union LTD
Iceni Projects are appointed by Scottish Rugby Union Ltd to provide Planning services in support of a new sports stadium development on land adjacent to BT Murrayfield. The stadium will provide a new permanent home for Edinburgh Rugby, one of Scotland’s two professional rugby clubs who compete in the Guinness Pro14 league.
For the majority of the past 15 seasons, Edinburgh Rugby has played its club matches at BT Murrayfield – the national rugby stadium which has a capacity of 67,000. Edinburgh Rugby currently draw average crowds of around 4,500 and playing in such a large capacity stadium has brought issues in terms of generating atmosphere, driving demand for tickets and creating a sense of club identity. Edinburgh Rugby has had a long-standing aspiration to develop a new purpose-built home, with such a move considered essential for the club’s future sustainability and growth. This led to a site within the wider BT Murrayfield complex being identified for the development of a 7,900 capacity stadium, 3G sports pitch and associated facilities.
Callum Fraser was contracted to provide support with the planning process, including pre-application discussions with the Council’s Planning Department and statutory consultees, co-ordinating the planning application submission, and managing the application through to its determination.
Planning permission was granted in September 2018 and the new stadium will be operational in time for the 2020/21 Pro14 and European season.
Joint Strategic Plan
Hertfordshire County Council
The five local planning authorities within South West Hertfordshire (Dacorum Borough Council, Hertsmere Borough Council, St Albans City and District Council, Three Rivers Borough Council and Watford Borough Council) are working in collaboration with Hertfordshire County Council to consider what would be needed to develop a Joint Strategic Plan (JSP), with the intention to proactively plan for the area’s growth beyond 2036, up to and past 2050.
Iceni Projects initially supported the six local authorities in South West Hertfordshire in preparing a Communications Plan to support the JSP programme, funded by the Planning Advisory Service (PAS). Following agreement of the Communications Plan, one of the early recommendations of the Plan was to deliver an initial piece of engagement with the community, prior to any formal work commencing on the development of the JSP.
We led an engagement programme which focussed on gaining insight into priorities, issues and opportunities across the area. The aim was also to widen community participation early in the process, particularly amongst young people.
Whitefield Drive, Kirkby Engie
Iceni’s Manchester office were instructed by Engie to prepare and submit a planning application to transform a derelict 16-acre site off Whitefield Drive, Kirkby.
The scheme will deliver 266 new homes, with a mix of private rent, affordable rent and shared ownership properties available. The proposed development will be constructed by Engie on behalf of registered provider Your Housing Group who will retain and manage the properties.
The site is located close to Kirkby Town Centre and is designated as a Development Opportunity Site, benefitting from its accessible location along with existing green space nearby. Through an extensive pre-application process including a Places Matter design review panel, the scheme has evolved and now includes a core set of design themes that have been closely adhered to across the entire site. For example, the inclusion of taller buildings to the site perimeter, coherent street edges to aid legibility, and distinct landmarks at key junctions helps create a sense of place and destination. The scheme is unified and cohesive through the design of nine house types, which will be combined in various ways to produce a range of semidetached and terraced options.
Ultimately, the plans focus on creating a new family orientated community with a range of homes for all ages, helping with the continued rejuvenation of the wider area of Kirkby and Knowsley, while also complementing the regeneration of Kirkby town centre.
The Sustainable Development Scorecard
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) has running throughout it the ‘golden thread of sustainable development’. In spite of this, there is no clear-cut, NPPF-based assessment criteria to consider a site or project’s sustainable development credentials, making current assessment processes both tricky and subjective.
The Sustainable Development Commission was established to address this recognised issue with our planning system. Made up of a balanced cross-section of industry professionals, the Commission has debated the issues and found solutions, culminating in the creation of the Sustainable Development Scorecard.
The Scorecard website is free to use and accessible to anyone with a vested interest in development, including developers, architects, planners, community groups and members of the public. By crystallising the NPPF’s guidance into a simple, online analysis tool, the Commission aims to provide a more consistent approach to sustainable development, leading to a more sustainable built environment.
