Ealing in London #7

The regeneration magazine for the London Borough of Ealing/issue 07/spring ‘16

EALIN - 14,000+ new homes - 128,000sqm+ new retail s

Ealing – ideally placed for home, leisure and business

FREEDOM TO WORK

www.ealinginlondon.com LONDON

W E S T L O N DON’S NEW VIBRANT VILLAGE

LIVE JUST 17 MINUTES F R O M B O N D S T R E E T ...

T H AT ’ S O N LY PA RT O F T H E S TO RY

R E G I S T E R YO U R I N T E R E S T

W W W . S O U T H A L LWAT E R S I D E . C O M

* Time taken from crossrail.co.uk

A proud member of the Berkeley Group of Companies

FRONTAGE S T U D I O / O F F I C E S PA C E 1KM CANAL

NEW LEISURE & RETAIL HUB

VIBRANT RESTAURANTS & BARS

CINEMA

CROSSRAIL ARRIVING 2019 ONE OF LONDON’S LARGEST REGENERATION PROJECTS

HOTEL

PARKS, PIAZZAS AND OPEN GREEN SPACES WEST LONDON’S NEW VIBRANT VILLAGE

THE COMMERCIAL OPPORTUNITY St James, as part of the Berkeley Group is proud to introduce an opportunity for potential commercial occupiers to become part of the early delivery of this exciting new development, just 17 minutes* from Central London** by Crossrail.

NEW COMMUNITY FACILITIES

1,000 NEW JOBS

For further information please contact our Commercial Property Director, Bruce Strong.

07818 636267 e: bruce.strong@stjames.co.uk www.southallwaterside.com

The first phase of commercial space is expected to be available in 2019, coinciding with the arrival of Crossrail to Southall.

* Time taken from crossrail.co.uk ** Bond Street Station

A proud member of the Berkeley Group of Companies

All Change at Ealing Broadway

Key information • British Land acquired Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre in 2013 and has now developed a comprehensive masterplan to refurbish and extend the centre.

• Attracting an annual footfall of circa 20 million, the mixed-use scheme currently has over 70 retail and restaurant units, a gym, and 100,000 sq ft of office space.

• Ealing is an increasingly affluent suburb of London. The centre will

benefit from significant investment in the borough, including a new cinema anchored leisure scheme, the Dickens Yard residential quarter, and Benson and Elliot’s residential scheme on the Broadway which links to the station. In 2019, the Crossrail Station will also be opening at Ealing.

Location Well located in the centre of Ealing and close to the train and tube station, Ealing Broadway is an attractive and convenient

shopping destination in West London.

The arrival of Crossrail in 2019, bringing reduced journey times to the City and West End, will have a significant impact on the wider Ealing area, increasing its appeal as a business and shopping destination, as well as a place where people aspire to live.

Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre dominates the retail offer in the town centre and has an affluent catchment of 1.9 million people, with nearly half (47%) in the key retail spending group of 25-54 year olds.

What’s Changed?

About British Land

The first phase of a £14 million refurbishment of the shopping centre was completed in time for Christmas 2015. The scope of works included new flooring, ceilings and lighting throughout the malls; new public toilets; redecoration and other improvements to the car park; new branding and signage; and a comprehensive wifi upgrade. With a much improved shopping environment, we have already secured lettings to Pandora, Lashious, Clas Ohlson, Bubble Magik and Doddle, and we will soon be welcoming Smiggle, Eat and a host of other quality retailers.

British Land is one of Europe’s largest Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).

UK Retail assets account for 51% of our portfolio. As the UK’s largest listed owner and manager of retail space, our portfolio is well matched to the different ways people shop today.

We are focused on being the destination of choice for retailers and their customers by being the best provider of spaces and services. Comprising around 22 million sq ft of retail space across shopping parks, superstores, shopping centres, department stores and leisure assets, the retail portfolio is modern, flexible and adaptable to a wide range of formats. Active asset management delivers space which is attractive and meets the needs of both retailers and consumers.

The Colonnades, Ealing Broadway’s new restaurant quarter, is continuing to grow.

Both Limeyard and Turtle Bay have been trading successfully since opening last year and Wasabi will open this spring.

The Town Square is set to become a popular meeting place and focal point for community events following the installation of new seating, lighting and landscaping.

Further information about British Land can be found on the website at www.britishland.com

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EDITORIAL DIRECTOR: Siobhán Crozier EDITOR: Lucy Purdy ASSISTANT EDITOR: James Wood HEAD OF DESIGN: Rachael Schofield DESIGN: Tammy Kerr PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Christopher Hazeldine BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR: Paul Gussar PROJECT MANAGER: Sue Mapara SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER: Simon Maxwell MANAGING DIRECTOR: Toby Fox COVER: Freedom to work illustration by Tammy Kerr IMAGES: Sharron Wallace, Peter Mountain, The Collective, Nick Cunard – nickcunard.co.uk, QPR FC, Tammy Kerr, ©Brendan Bell, Anna Batchelor, Ealing Council, Richard Nadal, Lalita Scott, David Tothill, Crossrail, Broadway Living, Land Securities/tp bennett, Squire and Partners, bptw partnership, Allies and Morrison, Phil Grayson pgdesigns.co.uk, Debby Wong/ Shutterstock.com, Carnival Films, Gage Skidmore (CC BY-SA 2.0), Matt Clayton, 2005 Getty Images/Nadine Rupp, ©BBC, St James, Assael Architecture, St George.

PRINTED BY: Park Communications

15

For Ealing Council Perceval House, 14-16 Uxbridge Road, Ealing W5 2HL

The latest twists and turns in Ealing’s regeneration story

15_FREEDOM TO WORK

From a thriving ‘third space’ scene to creative career changers, we find out how Ealing is blazing a trail for new ways of working

23_APPRENTICES

Blending training and education, Ealing is creating quality apprenticeship opportunities

29_MAP

We pinpoint the borough’s opportunity sites and major regeneration schemes

31_PROJECTS

A detailed look at the major development schemes under way and in the offing in Ealing

42_FILM

The borough has long been a hotspot for British filmmaking, and the likes of the West London Film Office and Met Film School ensure it continues to play a leading role.

We tune in to Ealing on screen

50_ST JAMES

We zoom in on St James’ transformative proposals for Southall Waterside

53_COUNCIL OFFICES

As council staff increasingly work out in the community, the authority has a bold plan in mind for the future of its headquarters

58_SITEMATCH

PUBLISHED BY: Southbank House, Black Prince Road, London SE1 7SJ 020 7978 6840 3foxinternational.com SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEEDBACK: ealinginlondonmagazine.com © 3Fox International Limited 2016.

All material is ­strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written ­permission of 3Fox International Limited is strictly ­forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine at time of going to press, but we accept no ­responsibility for omissions or errors.

The views expressed in this ­magazine are not ­necessarily those of 3Fox International Limited.

Mixed-use proposals are being sought for a major opportunity at Sandringham Mews in Ealing Broadway

issue seven/spring ‘16

CONTENTS

9_UPDATE

WWW.THECOLLECTIVE.CO.UK

THE COLLECTIVE

W E A R E R E D E F I N I N G T H E WAY P E O P L E C H O O S E TO L I V E

EALING IN LONDON

NEWS

The latest stories in Ealing’s regeneration

CPO ON CINEMA SITE Land Securities’ £100 million Filmworks cultural quarter in Ealing came one step closer in October 2015 with government confirmation that Ealing Council could compulsorily purchase the site to build the scheme.

The land had been left by its former owners, Empire Cinemas, following the demolition of the cinema in 2009.

An eight-screen, 1,000-seat cinema operated by Picturehouse Cinemas will take centre stage, alongside homes, shops, restaurants and a new town plaza. The CPO area includes the site of the former cinema, an office building, bar and properties on the boundary of the site.

Land Securities’ development director, Jonathan Levy, said the decision would allow the delivery of a “comprehensive film quarter”.

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell said: “I’m delighted to be able to report that we will – finally – have a new cinema in Ealing. We can move on with our ambitious redevelopment, which will bring this derelict site back to life – the people of Ealing have waited long enough.”

Building work is expected to start later this year and the new cinema could be open in 2018.

REFURB OF EALING BROADWAY SHOPPING CENTRE COMPLETE Owner British Land has completed a refurbishment of Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre, including improvements to the existing malls, enhanced lighting, shop fronts, signage and new toilet facilities.

The town square is set to become an “attractive hub” for community activities, said a spokeswoman. The car park has also been upgraded with better lighting, CCTV and more efficient ticketing services. Ealing has recently welcomed new retail and restaurant operators, including

jeweller Pandora, click and collect service Doddle, all-day brasserie Limeyard and Caribbean-themed restaurant Turtle Bay. Clas Ohlson and Bubble Magik opened their doors before Christmas. British Land is also planning to redevelop Crystal House, creating a new statement entrance to the shopping centre and improved frontages to the shops on The Broadway. The office building above will be converted and extended to create 55 quality homes for flexible private rented use. issue seven/spring ‘16

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UPDATE

QPR GETS GO-AHEAD FOR TRAINING GROUND Queens Park Rangers (QPR) football club has had planning consent granted for its Warren Farm training ground project in Ealing. Plans for a “first class facility”, which it is hoped will benefit the club and the community, moved a step closer after consent was

granted at a meeting of Ealing Council’s planning committee in September 2015. Proposals also include a community sports facility.

A spokesperson for QPR said: “This is an important step forward for the club and the plans to develop a first

class facility to benefit the club and the local community have moved closer.

“The club is mindful that there are a number of further technical challenges to overcome before work can commence, but we remain committed to delivering a first class facility.”

SOUTHALL STREET DESIGN WIN Ealing Council’s transport and highways team, in partnership with Murrill Construction, was awarded the Streets Award for outstanding street design at the Chartered Institute of Highways and Transportation awards 2015.

Works to Southall Broadway Boulevard were finished in June, completing a £6 million project to increase safety and boost business.

Judges said the scheme benefited from “an excellent, clear and simple vision on an extraordinarily busy street with a multiplicity of users.”

Southall Broadway now has new boulevard zones down the centre

of the road allowing pedestrians to cross the street more conveniently and safely. The road features wider footways while signalised crossings have been removed and a 20mph zone introduced. The 1km stretch has also been resurfaced, with new street lights, CCTV cameras, bins and benches.

Council leader Julian Bell said: “The plans transformed a busy and popular high street and are already providing real benefits to businesses, visitors and residents. I’m delighted this work received national recognition for the care and creativity that went into developing the area.”

EALING IN LONDON

PITSHANGER LANE WINS BRITISH HIGH STREET AWARD

EALING SET FOR MIPIM 2016 Council leader Julian Bell will pedal from London to the south of France to join Ealing Council’s delegation at MIPIM, the global property conference in Cannes this year.

The cycle ride will raise money for CORAM, the children’s charity.

Bell will be accompanied at the conference by executive director for regeneration and housing, Pat Hayes, director of regeneration and planning, Lucy Taylor and director for built environment, Noel Rutherford.

Ealing in London publisher 3Fox International is again organising the delegation for MIPIM, which takes place between 15–18 March.

The stand will feature a photographic exhibition by local photographer Alex Arnaoudov (work pictured above).

Bell said: “We’re gearing up for MIPIM – the key event in every developer’s diary – where we’ll be showcasing some of our top regeneration projects, such as the Filmworks development, which are among the most innovative and exciting in London.

“We’re also looking forward to meeting with developers across the globe and talking to them about the opportunities that we have in what will be the best-connected Crossrail borough in London.”

Pitshanger Lane in Ealing has been declared winner of the London category in The Great British High Street awards.

The government-funded awards support those working to revive, adapt and diversify high streets.

Of the colourful street which boasts a strong community atmosphere, judges said: “After a truly impressive campaign to galvanise the local vote, Pitshanger is the deserving winner of the London category. With its great community spirit, social media campaign and a commitment to supporting local retailers, Pitshanger delighted our judges.”

Traders and residents alike celebrated the win, following a campaign led by Pitshanger Village Traders Association.

Pitshanger triumphed over competition from Raynes Park High Street in Merton and Roman Road in Tower Hamlets to win first place.

PERCEVAL HOUSE TRANSFORMATION Ealing Council will transform its headquarters, Perceval House in Ealing Broadway, to better suit the authority’s modern way of working.

The 20,000sq m six-storey building may be demolished, rebuilt and potentially put to alternative use, after rapid advances in technology have enabled council employees to work remotely and flexibly, spending more time out of the office.

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell said the council wanted to “take action now” to ensure a headquarters is created that better suits future use and is as economically efficient as possible.

The plan was agreed by the council in October 2015. The authority is seeking a developer with whom it can partner to undertake the building of replacement offices, approximately 12,000sq m, which the council will own

freehold. New offices will need to be provided before the council can vacate Perceval House so the likely solution will be to build behind the existing Perceval House on the current car park. The council would then move to the new building before the old block is demolished, although there is still an option to take a temporary building elsewhere in Ealing town centre.

Read more on page 53. issue seven/spring ‘16

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UPDATE

BROMPTON FACTORY SET TO OPEN IN MAY Internationally recognised cycling brand Brompton Bicycle is moving to bigger premises in Greenford, Ealing, to increase production as demand for its bikes soars. The factory is set to open in May. At around 8,000sq m, the new site is twice the size of its current manufacturing base and will be large enough to house all processes of the business in one facility. The move will bring all 240 members of staff together.

Brompton Bicycle CEO, Will ButlerAdams OBE, said: “In the early days we couldn’t believe how big our factory was and how we would ever fill it. We have, and for some time we have been squashed in it and need more space.

“We are committed to London;

Brompton was born from a need of city living, our staff are Londoners and the city continues to inform how the Brompton develops.

“The move represents the ambition, passion and the long-term commitment we have to change how people live in cities around the globe. It comes with risks but these are worth taking if we wish to continue to innovate, such that we offer something of real value to Brompton customers.”

Brompton Bicycle’s ambition is to double production to 100,000 bikes a year when moving to the new site, and build on the export side of the business: 80% of bikes produced are shipped overseas.

CHIEF EXECUTIVE MOVES ON

BUSINESSES TURN FROM THE PRICEY EAST TO WEST East London may have ‘peaked’, prompting business owners to turn west to the likes of Ealing, evidence suggests. Prices in areas such as Shoreditch and Old Street continue to increase, now hovering somewhere around just £1.50 per sq ft less than in the neighbouring City of London.

With a lack of large grade A spaces available, Knight Frank research indicates that companies are now happier to leave their cluster behind to secure the best possible space.

“ “Acton is at the same stage that Shoreditch was 10 years ago – it’s affordable, and with the arrival of Crossrail will be very well connected,” said James Scott of housing startup The Collective.

“The launch of Imperial’s White City Campus will create even more innovation and entrepreneurialism, which will only serve to fuel the demand for co-working space.”

Read more about The Collective’s plans in Ealing on page 15.

Ealing’s chief executive, Martin Smith, announced in October that he will leave the council after six years in the job.

He said: “After much soul-searching and reflection, I’ve judged this to be the right time to leave the council, to go and try something different, as well as devoting more time to other interests that have taken something of a back seat. I’ve had a great six years here and I expect I could have easily enjoyed another six – it’s a wonderful borough to work for.”

Councillor Julian Bell, leader of the council, said: “Martin’s contribution to the council has been outstanding and I know that he will be missed greatly by staff and fellow councillors. It is easy to excel in times of plenty, but true leadership is needed in challenging times and we have been very lucky to have Martin at the helm.

“Martin’s reputation as one of local government’s most respected leaders is well-earned; he has surpassed our very high expectations and excelled as our chief executive. Although I am very sad he is leaving, I wish him every success in the future.”

At the time of writing, the council was in the process of recruiting a replacement. The new chief executive is expected to be in place by the spring.

A 1.5 ACRE SITE OPPOSITE EALING BROADWAY STATION, which will see Crossrail arrive in 2018/2019.

– The redevelopment of the site

will complete the high street along The Broadway, create an important new pedestrian lane through the town centre, lined with shops and cafes, and deliver 188 homes.

– Designed by Allies & Morrison,

the proposals include a series of beautiful garden courtyards on the upper levels linked by bridges as well as a taller building of significant architectural quality.

– The proposals will create

a new 5,000 sq ft music venue on the footprint of the historic Ealing Club and 6,000 sq ft has been earmarked for a boutique cinema.

www.9-42THEBROADWAY.com A view from Haven Place looking West towards Christ the Saviour Church

countryside is proud to support ealing council at MipiM 2016 completed phases 1 & 2 at acton gardens

countryside works in partnership with public and private sector organisations to regenerate housing estates and secure the provision of high quality mixed-use and mixed-tenure schemes. our projects are developed with local authorities, housing associations and local communities, and, we regard partnering as key to delivering this. We have undertaken more than 45 estate regeneration schemes since the 1980s and we have been building new homes in london and the south east since 1958.

cgis of current phases 3.1 & 3.2 at acton gardens

For further information please visit: www.countryside-properties.com

EALING IN LONDON

FREEDOM TO WORK

With its thriving third space, Ealing exemplifies a new flexible working culture. Could it be a blueprint for the future of the workplace? Lucy Purdy finds out

issue seven/spring ‘16

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FLEXIBLE WORKING

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ccounting for two-thirds of new jobs since 2008, self-employment is on the rise. More than one in seven workers are now employed in this way in the UK – a swelling army of 4.5 million. While the economy benefits from the flexible expertise independent professionals can offer, workers benefit from more balance. It amounts to a structural shift in the way we work.

If the trend continues as expected, our social infrastructure will have to change too, and Ealing is one of the places leading the way. Well-connected for central London, but with a vibrant creative scene of its own, the borough offers an enviable location alongside affordable rents and studio space for freelancers and young businesses, particularly those in creative fields.

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell said the trend is a marked one, as a recent small business expo event confirmed.

“Chatting to the 60 or so exhibitors, what was striking was how many of them said: ‘I used to work in the City but now I have my own business and

“Creative people want to go somewhere with a bit of life, where people can inspire them” I’m working in Ealing. I’m so glad I am.

My quality of life has improved. Why didn’t I do this before?’

“They were all saying the same thing. There was a whole host of all sorts of different small businesses, each with their own story.”

The practice of making use of socalled ‘third space’ work locations is thriving in Ealing, as Lauren Morrissette, manager of Artisan coffee shop in New Broadway, explains.

“We have a lot of people who come in with their laptops, plug in and spend the day working here. Some spend three or four days a week here so we see the same faces – one is a film producer for example – and get to know them well. Lots of businesses also hold meetings here.

“I know a lot of people don’t want

to work in a traditional office any more, but get distracted working from home.

Here, you come in, have your coffee, tune in and work.”

Morrissette says the shop – one of four London premises owned by the same independent, family-run business – has done a roaring trade since opening in August 2014. Eye-catching design touches help make it a space in which people want to linger, from tables topped with upcycled leatherworking blocks to a wall constructed from funkily shaped secondhand windows.

A photo series called West End Girls and West End Boys hangs from the walls – the work of Chris Moxey, a photographer who has called Ealing home for 20 years.

For the many freelancers and small businesses working in the creative fields

EALING IN LONDON

Better connectivity .means many workers .are thinking beyond .the traditional office.

SOURAYA KARAMI

in Ealing, from the film industry which has long called the borough home to those in media, photography, IT and design roles, this kind of space fits the bill perfectly.

“Creative people don’t necessarily want to be shut away in an office. They want to go somewhere with a bit of life, where people around can inspire them,” notes Morrissette.

What about businesses taking the next step? What are the options for Ealing firms with perhaps a handful of staff needing a space and address from which to work, but who can’t yet make the financial commitment to a full-blown office?

Step forward James Scott. Scott is COO of The Collective, a property company built around its co-living product: rental accommodation for young professionals that acknowledges this blurring boundary between life and work. Scott’s team is behind the revamped Doughnut Factory, a creative workspace in Acton Central where desk membership starts at £245 a month and where an entrepreneurial generation that prioritises “flexibility, creativity and fulfilment” is number one.

Souraya Karami is typical. She studied for years to qualify as an architect, grafting for long hours to master the profession’s exacting requirements. But six years after securing her first job, she began to feel something was lacking.

“I felt bored and unchallenged.

It wasn’t for me. I wanted to design products that I believed in. So I decided to go back to school.”

Karami moved to London to do a one-year diploma in shoe design and shoe making at London College of Fashion. She describes it as “life changing”.

“I knew straight away that I would start my own label. I felt there was a need for shoes that were not over-designed or overdecorated but stylish, colourful and comfortable. So I started Esska at the end of 2006 from the spare room of my boyfriend’s flat.”

Esska Shoes now runs out of Europa Studios in Park Royal, with a team of four, designing and selling women’s shoes that are sold in independent boutiques across England and through its website.

The studio is a study in what a clean, contemporary workspace can be: white, with splashes of colourful design-inspiration images, high ceilings and huge windows through which the sun floods.

“I love it,” says Karami.

And how does her new working life compare to architecture?

“I genuinely love every side of my job. I wear many coats and change faces daily. I can be the designer, the person picking colours and materials, product developer, saleswoman, customer service, logistics co-ordinator, accountant: you name it. But more and more, I am learning to zoom out, delegate, and focus on strategy and growth. Being my own boss is totally different.”

Having moved to Acton six years ago, and as a mother to two young children, Park Royal was an obvious location choice for Karami.

The studio is a stone’s throw from North Acton station on the Central line. This means a 19-minute buzz into the global fashion hub of Oxford Circus.

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FLEXIBLE WORKING

“Ealing is very proactive, visionary and supportive of progressive models” Scott and his team understand keenly the needs of this kind of entrepreneur, and have tried to respond in every aspect of the space.

“This new type of worker is not tied to a fixed desk or stuck behind a computer screen for hours on end, but tends to be out and about in meetings – networking and making connections – so craves flexibility. Similarly, they crave collaborative environments in which they can be around others who relate to what they are going through and the challenges they face.

“Workers are also more conscious of the look and feel of a workplace, choosing to base themselves where they’re going to feel inspired and work at their best.”

Recognising that the co-working market in east London was saturated, Scott identified a gap for this type of workspace in the west. With data from the likes of Knight Frank showing a hike in rents around Silicon Roundabout and Shoreditch, startups are looking

elsewhere for office space. Their gazes are moving west, and Ealing is poised to embrace the tech migration.

When the authority approached The Collective with a proposal for The Doughnut Factory, it was a “perfect opportunity” says Scott.

“As a borough, Ealing is very proactive, visionary and forward thinking but also pragmatic and supportive of the development of new and progressive models. And with the upcoming Old Oak regeneration meaning improved connectivity and the new White City campus [Imperial College London’s major new site and part of a new research quarter in Ealing], west London will only become a more attractive place for entrepreneurs to set up shop.”

The team will open its first coliving scheme in North Acton in May, launching its co-living concept. Scott believes a rental product so tailored to suit the changing lifestyles of the millennial generation has never been

done in the UK before – “nor anywhere in the world at this scale” – and it will incorporate both co-living and coworking spaces. The ground floor will be open to the community and include a mix of retail, events space and a cafe.

“Acton is the new Shoreditch,” confirms council leader Bell.

“We’re keen to pursue creative, ITbased industries. Our communications and connectivity advantages are already brilliant, with fantastic access into central London and to Heathrow.

Be it road, rail, tube, whatever transport connections you need, you really couldn’t be in a better place. And with HS2 offering quick access up north, and even better access with Crossrail, you’re perfectly positioned in Ealing.”

When Crossrail comes, he says, Ealing will be “an inner London borough for travel times, but an outer London borough for quality of life”.

Another work hub, made possible by Greater London Authority-funding, will soon come to St James Avenue in west

EALING IN LONDON

The Collective creates spaces that cater for blurring boundaries between life and work.

MARLÈNE HUISSOUD French experimental designer Marlène Huissoud is founder and creative director of Studio Marlène Huissoud.

After graduating in 2014 with an MA in Material Futures at Central Saint Martins school of art and design, she worked as a freelance designer before setting up her own studio. Huissoud, who lives in Ealing, has had her work featured in cutting-edge design publications such as Dezeen and Design Milk, and she has been namechecked by the Design Council as one of the UK’s 70 rising stars. She is currently using materials from bees and silkworms in her products, which are sold in galleries worldwide, from Chamber in New York and Mint in London to Gallery Bensimon in Paris.

Huissoud’s partner works at nearby Stockley Park so Ealing was an obvious place

to put down roots.

“Ealing has very good transport links to central London and yet you don’t feel like you’re living in a big city. It is a ‘small’ London with everything you need. I really appreciate living close to Walpole Park – a chance to be surrounded by green space. I sometimes stay home when managing admin and my emails, and really enjoy having a coffee at the Electric Coffee, and the Wa Cafe has delicious Japanese pastries. [Both are in Ealing Broadway].

“I feel extremely lucky to be able to run my own studio and hope I’ll be able to continue for many years. My dream is to keep working with people who share an interest in challenging the making process of art and design.”

Huissoud’s experience nods to this increasing fluidity in work practices.

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FLEXIBLE WORKING

Flexibility, creativity and fulfilment are prioritised at workspace The Doughnut Factory in Acton Central.

Ealing. The authority, in partnership with Catalyst Housing, the University of West London, social enterprise Accession and other local creative groups, will develop a space for home workers, startup enterprises and those in the creative sector. It will open in the autumn.

The council is laying the foundations for a sustainable business community in other ways too. When research showed that 20% of Ealing residents received less than the living wage, Bell and his team took action. They offered employers a reduction in business rates if they became accredited by the Living Wage Foundation.

“Those who do pay it argue very strongly that it creates a much more loyal workforce,” says Bell, “one that is more settled and more productive. We also know that 15p in every pound of a living wage is spent in the local economy.”

Cultural events such as Ealing Council’s summer festival and the Ealing Half Marathon, which has grown in popularity since being launched as a London Olympic legacy event, bolster trade and nurture a sense of borough identity in one fell swoop.

The business-friendly attitude extends to public realm decisions too.

“We’re trying to make all our town centres feel safe and enjoyable.

“This is partly about fighting back against online shopping and simply giving people a feelgood atmosphere and experience when they do visit our town centres. We’ve invested heavily in this, particularly in Greenford and Ealing town centre and have just finished a fabulous new scheme in Southall: the Broadway Boulevard project.”

Above all, Ealing is a family-friendly place – so it is no surprise that people are keen to work from here as well as settle down.

Bell adds: “A lot of the feedback I get from these ‘relocators’, people who have moved from the City to work for themselves in Ealing, is about commuting time and the fact they can now walk or cycle to work, or work at home.

“It’s also the flexibility around childcare and family arrangements.

Ealing has excellent schools, so it’s a great place to raise a family. If you can work here as well? Then it’s perfect.”

AN EXCITING NEW DEVELOPMENT FOR GREENFORD

We are drawing on our experience as the largest multifamily operator in the United States to deliver a vibrant, rental-led neighbourhood, which will pioneer UK multifamily living in Greenford, West London. Our multifamily model allows people of all ages and life stages to enjoy the benefits of fully-managed properties with superior specifications and amenities. This is an exciting new way of living in the UK, where purpose-designed, purpose-built apartments, amenities and public space will create communities to suit modern lifestyles and working patterns.

Our plans for this 26.5 acre new development include: • homes for rent and for sale • resident amenities and community facilities • cafes and restaurants • retail space • office space • high-quality and well-managed public open space • canal-side landscaping, abundant green spaces and a new pedestrian bridge • excellent transport links with mainline, underground and forthcoming Crossrail connections

We are working closely with local stakeholders and the London Borough of Ealing to create a genuinely sustainable community. For more information or to join the conversation visit www.greystar-greenford.com

Computer generated image is indicative only

Our vision is to create a new canal-side neighbourhood, which is inclusive of the surrounding community and a range of affordability levels. It will combine a wealth of amenities and exceptional customer service, to deliver an excellent experience for our residents as well as the wider area.

Career

Undergraduate, Postgraduate and Part-time courses available

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EALING IN LONDON

GROWING AMBITIONS Apprenticeships are proving to be a successful route into employment in Ealing, reports James Wood

Y

oung people come up against considerable pressure to achieve exam results that lead to university. Targets are set by all schools to try and help students successfully obtain placements too – but though teachers and mentors might sing the praises of further education, those choosing a different path know that university is not necessarily the best option for every individual.

Ealing Council agrees and has created a host of apprenticeships for young people over the last nine years. The Ealing Apprenticeship Network sees the authority work with training providers and employers to create placements, while the 100 in 100 campaign has – for three years running – led to the creation of 100 placements in 100 days between September and December each year.

In 2015, the target was reached in November – with a month to spare.

Though many still think of apprenticeships as second best to further education as a route into work, a host of success stories help to challenge this assumption.

The Network Apprentice of the Year, awarded by the council at a ceremony each year, was won this time around

by Sofia Cabral, who works in facilities management at housing provider and property developer A2Dominion.

She tells Ealing in London that the decision to take an apprenticeship was not a straightforward one. “Towards the end of sixth-form, I was told by my

Bradley Gangadeen’s apprenticeship led to a job at Kew Gardens. issue seven/spring ‘16

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APPRENTICES

Sofia Cabral receives the Network Apprentice of the Year award from council leader Julian Bell.

Clockwise: Mikey Barnes at The Griffin in Brentford; Julian Kerr with his daughter at the council’s awards where he won a Significant Achievement award; and Charlie Balch at Palletways.

school that I should go to university.

“That’s often seen as the correct way of doing things. I was having difficulties at the time and I knew I wasn’t going to achieve the results I wanted. It was so frustrating.

“It beat me up for a little while that I wasn’t doing well, but I felt that I couldn’t let exam results determine my future. So I landed an internship with A2Dominion for the summer.

They explained how successful their apprentices had been and I realised that was what I wanted to do.”

Cabral is now a year into her apprenticeship, and feels sure of her decision. “I’m really happy. I don’t regret it one single bit. It’s more suitable for me and I’ve got so much out of it so far.

Interacting with head office, CEOs and executives every day really forces you to brush up your business persona. I have become well known at the company

and the experience has made me realise I want to work in a people-focused role.

I don’t think I would have come to such a clear decision at university.”

The council also supports young people through a scheme called Pathways. It was designed to help those who clearly display potential, but are not yet ready to be recruited into an apprenticeship.

Julian Kerr’s story is one of its great successes. After completing the Pathways programme, Kerr took a two-year apprenticeship at the council’s Youth and Connexions service, which helps people overcome social and educational problems and prepare for adult life. He is now employed full-time as a youth mentor at Brighter Futures, another initiative helping vulnerable young people in the borough who are at risk of going into care.

The challenges Kerr has faced in his

EALING IN LONDON

“They were brilliant. I think Ealing Council is one of the best out there when it comes to working with young people” own life prepared him well for his work.

He approached the council for help when circumstances were particularly difficult.

“My girlfriend was pregnant at the time and I had a lot going through my head about what I was going to do now that I would have two people to provide for,” he says.

“Through Pathways, I spoke to my adviser about what I should do. I told them I wanted to have some form of income – even if it was just £100 a week – so that after nine months I would have enough money to spend on nappies and everything else and get myself in a stable position.

“They were brilliant. I think Ealing Council is one of the best out there when it comes to working with young people.”

Kerr is now creating opportunities for

disadvantaged people, something he describes as the most gratifying part of the job. “Seeing the changes that people go through has been the most rewarding experience,” he says.

From taking a young person fishing in Greenford to helping another, not long out of education, to take part in performing arts classes, Kerr clearly relishes his role. “That guy eventually performed on stage,” he grins. “He didn’t have a speaking part, but just getting up there was a huge deal for him.”

Uninspired by his studies at sixthform, Charlie Balch has also benefited from his apprenticeship. Working at Palletways, an express pallet distribution service based in Greenford, has boosted his communication skills and confidence, as he explains. issue seven/spring ‘16

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APPRENTICES

Shulah Felix was the 2014 Ealing Council Apprentice of the Year and is now directly employed by the council.

“I feel the experience has totally changed me. It has been a constant boost” “Part of my job involves communicating with lorry drivers who don’t speak English as a first language.

“Before I started this apprenticeship I would have been too shy to do something like this [talk to Ealing in London] and I feel like the experience has totally changed me. It has been a constant boost.”

Balch now has a full-time job at the company, has excellent relations with colleagues and according to his employer, has contributed significantly to improving Palletway’s database systems.

He was challenged to slash the time

lapse between the delivery of pallets and recording information about their arrival to within an hour. And he came out shining. The rate of deliveries falling into this category has jumped from 25% to 85% since his arrival – a contributing factor to Balch being nominated Network Apprentice of the Year.

Council-organised apprenticeships are in fields as diverse as horticulture, hairdressing and catering. Mikey Barnes is now employed as a full-time chef at The Griffin pub in Brentford, and was highly commended for Network Apprentice of the Year, following a two-

year apprenticeship at the Clocktower Cafe in Hanwell. Despite having little experience of cooking before, he developed a passion for the job.

Green-fingered Bradley Gangadeen, who worked in horticulture with the council’s parks service, now has a full-time job at one of Europe’s most prestigious horticultural hotspots – the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. Shulah Felix, once a community safety apprentice at the council, is now its ‘prevent officer’, a role which involves protecting children from radicalisation.

Felix says: “I have no regrets about the path I chose, as the apprenticeship has given me the skills, confidence and qualifications I need to succeed.”

As more employers in Ealing see the benefit of taking on apprentices, new opportunities are being created.

Word of mouth plays an important role, with businesses sharing stories about how successful their apprentices have been. Vanita Nicholls, the council’s apprenticeships manager, says initial scepticism from some businesses has been quashed by positive firsthand experiences of the benefits apprenticeships can bring.

David Charlwood, project director at St George for the Dickens Yard development in Ealing town centre, has supported apprenticeships on the site since construction began in 2010.

Dickens Yard has now supported 29 apprentices on-site in trades and skills ranging from business administration to plumbing and electrical works.

Charlwood has also provided work experience opportunities for budding construction students and future apprentices, helping them understand what daily work life is like on a building site, giving them exposure to various trades, as well as working in offices.

Students from colleges and schools also have opportunities to go on site visits, which highlight job prospects in construction. They learn that it is not only site workers in hi–vis vests doing manual work, but that there are also roles in management, design, commercial teams, customer service, finance and ongoing development.

Spurred on by the accomplishments of the apprentices themselves, the council looks set to continue its drive to support young people: creating skilled workers for the future too.

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EALING IN LONDON

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EALING ON THE MAP The major schemes currently unfolding across Ealing’s many regeneration sites

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1. C rossrail stations (see key,ACTON left) CENTRAL 12 2. Southall Waterside THE VALE A4020 3. Broadway Living – Eastcote Lane and High Lane 4. Film Quarter 5.

N The Perfume Factory GU 6. ACTON Copley Close (Broadway Living) TOWN 7. Rectory Park 8. 9-42 The Broadway SOUTH ACTON 9. Ealing Town Hall 10. Western Avenue 11. University of West London 12. Perceval House (Broadway Living) See page 53 for more.

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issue seven/spring ‘16

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Developing potential in

Ealing Maxicorp is an established property investment and development company with major schemes currently under development in London and the Channel Islands.

We are now focusing our long term strategy on our latest purchase, Villiers House at Ealing Broadway station. Our aim is to realise the full potential of this important landmark asset

EALING BROADWAY

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EALING IN LONDON

CROSSRAIL STATION WORKS

Across Ealing, five stations are being developed in time for the arrival of Crossrail in 2019.

Work on Ealing Broadway station began in September 2015. The ticket hall is set to double in size, allowing for 17 standard ticket gates and one wider gate to be installed. Plans also include four new lifts, improved staircases, platform extensions, new toilet facilities and customer screens, station signage, help points and CCTV. It is expected to take two years.

A new station building in Southall

is scheduled for delivery by late 2016.

Platforms one to four will be extended to allow for 10-car trains. West Ealing station improvements will include the installation of a larger ticket hall on Manor Road, as well as the extension of platforms and improved passenger facilities, with work scheduled for completion by late 2017.

At Acton Main Line, Crossrail will deliver a new station building with a larger ticket hall and connecting footbridges to the south of the existing station building on Horn Lane. There

will be step-free access between street level and all platforms via new footbridges with stairs and two lifts within the station. Platforms two to four will be extended to accommodate 10-car trains. Work on the delivery of a new station building is expected to start in mid-2016 and be completed by summer 2017.

Minor work to Hanwell station will include upgrades to the toilets, signage and information at the station. An agreement is also in place to deliver new lifts by 2019. issue seven/spring ‘16

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PROJECTS

SOUTHALL WATERSIDE St James, part of the Berkeley Group, is developing this 35.6-ha brownfield site, one of London’s largest regeneration projects, in conjunction with Ealing Council and the Greater London Authority. The council resolved to grant planning permission for a revised masterplan for Southall Waterside in early December 2015.

Proposals include 3,750 homes, along with more than 74,000sq m of commercial space, a two-form entry primary school and a health centre.

More than half of the masterplan will be dedicated to outdoor space, including landscaped parkland, leisure

and play spaces and public piazzas.

A network of safe cycle paths and walkways will improve connections to the bordering 36-ha Minet Country Park and open access to a 1km trail alongside the Grand Union Canal.

Designed to complement Southall’s well-established town centre, the development will introduce a new commercial and leisure hub, with plans for a hotel, a cinema, community centres, and a mix of retail, restaurant and cafe amenities, with parking allocated solely for commercial use.

Activity associated with a gas works on the site ceased in the 1970s.

Sean Ellis, chairman of St James, said: “The Southall masterplan represents the largest and most significant regeneration scheme for west London in terms of its size, scale and ambition. Our vision will see the transformation of this derelict brownfield site, and deliver muchneeded housing and an exciting mixeduse destination that brings numerous benefits to the existing local community and new residents.”

The 2019 arrival of Crossrail will see a direct service to Bond Street in 17 minutes and Canary Wharf in 30.

Read more on page 50.

BROADWAY LIVING Broadway Living, the council’s development and property rental company, is now in its second year of operation.

The company, which is wholly owned by the council, was set up to provide much-needed high quality market rental homes and rental properties at a market discount to Ealing residents. The company is supporting the council’s ambition to provide a wide range of housing choices in the borough, and will deliver more than 1,500 homes across Ealing over the next five years.

Tenants will be able to instantly access their accounts and report needed repairs via a web portal.

Broadway Living owns 10 flats in Eastcote Lane, let at market rents.

More properties will be let at a discounted market rent to help residents who may otherwise have had to move away, stay near to family and friends, as well as more properties at market rents coming soon. The next project for Broadway Living is with Ealing Council on the delivery of around 300 properties at High Lane.

The pre-procurement work for this site is proceeding well, with contractors currently being sought. Broadway Living is also looking for other opportunities to partner with developers working in Ealing, and for new sites.

EALING IN LONDON

FILM QUARTER CPO Land Securities’ £100 million Filmworks cultural quarter in Ealing was given a boost in October 2015 with news that the government has confirmed the council could compulsorily purchase the site.

The development’s centerpiece will be an eight-screen, 1,000-seat cinema operated by Picturehouse, as well as restaurants, shops and homes, and a new town plaza.

The cultural quarter will include retention of the former Empire Cinema art deco colonnades into a new building and the original Walpole Picture Theatre arch. The CPO area includes

the site of the former Empire Cinema, which closed in 2008, as well as a neighbouring office building, bar and other properties on the site boundary.

Land Securities’ development director, Jonathan Levy, said: “The decision is crucial in allowing us to deliver a comprehensive film quarter that connects Walpole Park with Bond Street and Ealing Broadway, creating a new public square, new shops, restaurants, homes and new jobs in Ealing town centre.”

Ealing Council leader, Julian Bell, added: “I am delighted to be able to report that we will – finally – have a new

cinema in Ealing after more than seven years. The CPO can be progressed and we can move on with our ambitious redevelopment, which will bring this derelict site back to life.”

The scheme will create approximately 350 jobs and 150 new homes to be located in spaces surrounding the cinema, retail outlets and restaurant space. Ealing Filmworks will link Walpole Park with New Broadway and Bond Street through safe and attractive pedestrianised streets. Building work is expected to start in late 2016 and could see the cinema opening in 2018. issue seven/spring ‘16

33

Southall Gasworks National Grid – Working with the community and supporting regeneration in Ealing

Overhead view of the former Southall Gasworks, with our areas of work highlighted in blue.

Photos of National Grid's team hosting our community safety and information events.

We’re removing the disused gas holders on the former Southall Gasworks site.

The developer and landowner, St James, will then be able to regenerate the site, deliver thousands of new homes, new local jobs, green space and community facilities.

We’re working closely with the local community throughout our work, attending ward forums, public meetings and hosting our own community information and safety events.

For more information please get in touch:

0800 319 6186

NationalGrid@SouthallGasholders.com • www.SouthallGasholders.com

EALING IN LONDON

THE PERFUME FACTORY A development project in Ealing will become one of the biggest housing schemes designed for private rent in the UK, after Ealing Council granted planning permission.

The local authority approved outline consent in February for developer Essential Living’s £200 million proposals, which will see 534 homes built on the site of the former Elizabeth Arden factory in North Acton.

The scheme, known as The Perfume Factory, will also contain around 6,500sq m of commercial space, as well as an on-site concierge, landscaping and a dedicated family block. It was designed by architect Squire and Partners.

The development is close to the Old Oak Common regeneration area, which has been prioritised by the mayor of London amid plans for a new Crossrail station and HS2 rail hub. In December, Transport for London secured €4 million in funding from the European

Commission to develop rail stations.

Situated on a 1.16-ha site at 140 Wales Farm Road, The Perfume Factory will feature a mix of studio, one, two and three-bedroom apartments, as well as six fourbedroomed mews houses.

Martin Bellinger, chief operating officer at Essential Living, said: “[It will create] more than 500 new homes for Londoners. This highlights the growing ability of the build-to-rent sector to make a very real contribution to Britain’s housing needs, while providing renters with a new service-led offer that treats them like customers for the first time.”

The design from Squire and Partners was influenced by modern art deco.

Tim Gledstone, partner there, said: “Essential Living’s provision of a fullymanaged estate creates exciting design possibilities for us in terms of creating a connected and facilitated community which is both self-supporting and engaged with the existing area.”

issue seven/spring ‘16

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PROJECTS

COPLEY CLOSE Copley Close in Hanwell is Ealing Council’s flagship regeneration project. The first phase of building is nearing completion, with 40 properties refurbished and five new houses built.

The refurbishment has been completed to the new Copley Standard which sets a benchmark for high quality specification across the estate. New kitchens and bathrooms have been installed as well as balconies and secure walkways and entrances.

The estate’s design won the best conceptual project award at the 2014 London Planning Awards.

The project is in seven phases and the council will shortly announce the contractor to complete works for the second phase of 33 new homes at Copley North. Due to start by summer, this will see the building of a block of 30 flats and three mews houses.

This range will complement Broadway Living’s discount market rent product, and homes for private rent and sale.

Overall, the regeneration will see the refurbishment of 556 homes as well as the delivery of 205 new properties. The further five phases will be let over the next 18 to 24 months.

RECTORY PARK Architect bptw partnership has secured planning approval for the latest stages of the Rectory Park estate regeneration in Northolt. The third and fourth phases, which form part of the large-scale regeneration by Network Housing, will see the delivery of 289 new homes and a community hub. bptw has created a mixed tenure scheme with a design focus on landscaping and open spaces. This is designed to complement the estate’s proximity to the neighbouring Northolt and Greenford Countryside Park.

So far, 160 of the 449 homes have been completed. The new mixed tenure homes will be delivered in a combination of one to four-bedroom properties. Being marketed as Mandeville Place, construction on phases three and four will begin soon.

Over 40 years of building brilliant homes

Network Housing Group has been building and managing affordable homes for local people since 1974.

We are experts in major regeneration projects and the development of new affordable homes.

We are the partner of choice for three large-scale regeneration projects in London delivering new homes for rent and private sale including: • £95 million for 447 homes on the Rectory Park estate in Ealing • £162 million for 1,674 homes at Stockwell Park and Robsart Village estates in Lambeth • £66.5 million for 229 homes on the South Kilburn estate in Brent We have an ambition to build 1,000 homes a year including homes for Affordable Rent, Shared Ownership, Build for Rent and Private Sale in London and Hertfordshire.

We have a great track record of working closely in partnership with local authorities, developers, contractors, landlords and residents.

We are actively seeking more land and development opportunities.

For more information or to discuss an opportunity please contact our New Business team on: 0208 782 4230 or newbusiness@networkhg.org.uk

Ealing Filmworks

bringing cinema back to Ealing

Working in partnership with Ealing Borough Council to provide a multi-screen cinema, new shops, restaurants and housing in the heart of Ealing.

EALING IN LONDON

9-42 THE BROADWAY, EALING TOWN CENTRE An application for planning permission has been submitted for a development at 9-42 The Broadway and 1-4 Haven Place within the Ealing town centre conservation area. It was submitted

by Benson Elliot and development manager Londonewcastle. The scheme includes the construction of eight buildings, ranging from two to 18 storeys, to provide 191 residential units, flexible retail and leisure floorspace, basement parking and associated public realm. The site will also include a music venue on the site of the original Ealing Club, a key venue for the early 1960s British Blues scene.

The consultation period for the scheme closed in August, and a number of amendments were made to the proposal as a result.

Peter Cornforth, director of retail at Benson Elliot, told CoStar property news service: “We’re really excited to have submitted plans that we firmly believe will create a fantastic destination at the heart of Ealing Broadway. A great blend of large and small shops, with apartments and green space above, all benefiting from a new pedestrian street connecting The Broadway with the future Crossrail station.”

James Shindler, director at Londonewcastle, said it was a “fantastic opportunity” to contribute to Ealing’s significant musical and cinematic traditions, while delivering a better range and quality of shops, a public route and quality new homes.

EALING TOWN HALL Ealing Council is looking to safeguard the future of the Grade II-listed Ealing Town Hall, and breathe new life into the building. It began marketing the town hall in mid-November, offering the lease of part of it. It intends to retain ownership of the building, and occupy its eastern wing.

The council is looking at proposals such as a boutique hotel, restaurant, conference venue or office space.

The new uses will enable the function rooms, including the Victoria Hall, to be refurbished and made available for community hire. The remaining part of the building would continue to be used by the council for civic and community purposes, including marriage and civil partnership ceremonies, the mayor’s parlour and office space for councillors.

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell said: “The town hall has enormous potential

and we want it to accommodate a range of community and commercial activities which contribute to Ealing’s economic and cultural life.”

At the time of going to press, a number of parties had expressed interest in the building and the council was progressing the tender process.

Subject to planning permission, work on the town hall could start in spring 2017. issue seven/spring ‘16

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PROJECTS

WESTERN AVENUE Proposals for a new development of 180 homes at Western Avenue in Acton have been approved by Ealing Council’s planning committee. After two years in the planning pipeline, the scheme by Notting Hill Housing was developed in close liaison with the community, Transport for London and the council and will see five sites running parallel to the A40 transformed into mixed tenure apartments, family houses and retail space.

Designed by architect bptw partnership, the low to mid-rise buildings are to be constructed in brick and have been designed to integrate with other buildings in the area. Roger Arkell, senior planning manager at Notting Hill Housing, said: “We are delighted that Ealing has approved this scheme which will provide high quality homes in Acton. Gaining the go-ahead on these key sites along the A40 was not without its challenges but through bptw partnership’s hard work and carefully considered designs, we have secured an excellent outcome.”

UNIVERSITY OF WEST LONDON A major refurbishment and redevelopment project at the University of West London’s St Mary’s Road site in south Ealing was completed in September 2015 with the opening of its centrepiece: a state-of-the-art library.

Two parts of the new development, Heartspace and Street, opened in January 2015. The Heartspace includes a refectory, social space and performance centre, while the refurbished Street now provides a centre for student needs.

The university has invested heavily in its estate over the last three years as part of a transformation to ensure it remains competitive with the facilities on offer at competing universities.

This investment is key to the university’s strategy to attract and retain students, and promote a positive image of the university locally and internationally.

The Perfume Factory — North Acton 1.

534 quality new homes

2.

Creative workspace available for rent now

2.

Construction starts mid-2017

3.

Homes available to rent from 2019

Outline planning consent has been resolved to be granted by Ealing Council for the redevelopment of the Perfume Factory. The scheme is to be a landmark mixed-use development in Ealing comprising over 500 build to rent homes, 80,000 sq ft of commercial space.

As part of the existing building Essential Living are currently creating a co-working facility to encourage local fashion designers and fledgling businesses to work together and create an exciting and vibrant space to work, where peers can engage with each other and nurture their creative ideas and talents. The intention is to harness this growing business and develop a dedicated building within the development to continue to grow this exciting sector. Creative space is available now, so please contact us if you are interested in taking space from a single desk to 50,000 sq ft

essentialliving.co.uk Welcome to the Future of Renting

42

FILM

BIG SCREEN SCENE As London stakes its claim as the film capital of the world, Lucy Purdy discovers how Ealing is the engine room of a new British golden age of filmmaking

W

hen Woody Allen, Martin Scorsese or Steven Spielberg are filming in town, each makes a beeline for Ealing. These three blockbusting kings of the global film industry know what they like when they’re making movies in the capital, and they like this west London borough with a history of punching well above its filmmaking weight.

From Ealing Studios, where Downton Abbey has been made for six years, to the council-run film office attracting Hollywood heavyweights to shoot films and programmes at Ealing locations, the borough is perfectly poised to benefit from an anticipated £3 billion spend on film and high-end TV in Britain in the next few years.

Foreign investment fuelled by tax breaks, world-recognisable locations and a reputation for exacting standards, production skills and aweinspiring special effects have helped underscore London’s supremacy. And Ealing has always been one of the hotspots, explains Mike Liddall, head of the West London Film Office.

“We have the world-renowned Ealing Studios on our doorstep and a whole host of lesser-known ones that are also really important to the industry.

The vast bulk, we’re talking 90% of the TV and film industry’s supply chain companies, from lighting and camera to prop hire, are based off the A40 in Acton. So this borough is the film and TV engine house of London. And

guess what? London is now the most filmed location in the world. It was third, behind New York and Los Angeles, but has jumped to the top, which is why we’ve just had our busiest year yet.”

When tasked with making the most of Ealing’s filming potential in the early 1990s, only a smattering of other London councils had even begun to think of it as a potential income stream.

So Liddall turned to a friend working at the BBC to ask what it was that film and television makers really wanted.

“He told me that what was needed was a one-stop shop, a single point of contact rather than multiple council departments. So that’s what we did. Our first one was a Direct Line commercial of a car turned on its roof.

It was a really big, impactful advert and we charged the crew to film on the streets in Ealing.”

The concept had launched.

Ironically, the BBC, who had filmed in the borough for free for years, took umbrage at the new charges, and Liddall was summoned to a meeting in their canteen. Striking up a conversation with a TV researcher he was sitting next to, he found an unlikely

ally in her boss who told Liddall’s contact he thought that charging for locations was a reasonable idea. It was Jeremy Paxman.

“I decided to keep the charges, but also to go on the offensive to be helpful,” says Liddall.

“I knew the film crews could afford it, for the right location. The power of advertising and the power of a good location is huge. Major brands can increase sales by millions if they produce the right advert.”

The film office now represents the boroughs of Ealing and neighbouring Harrow, and was based at Ealing Studios before moving to the council’s offices in 2006. Liddall and his team have successfully attracted film crews to both council and private sites, helping create major feature films, well-known TV dramas and immediately recognisable pop videos. What do Love Actually, Bend It Like Beckham, Only Fools and Horses and Blur’s Parklife video have in common? You guessed it. All include filming in Ealing.

The team receives hundreds of requests each month, from student filmmakers seeking the perfect spot

“London is now the most filmed location in the world. It jumped to the top, which is why we’ve just had our busiest year yet”

EALING IN LONDON

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MIKE LIDDALL ON EALING FILMING HIGHLIGHTS

Brad Pitt starred in World War Z, filmed partly in Ealing, while Woody Allen (below) is a fan of shooting in the borough.

“One of the most surreal moments I’ve experienced in this job was when we built a kind of Stonehenge using 10ft [3m] polystyrene ‘stones’ on Horsenden Hill,” says Mike Liddall.

“They looked so realistic that some people thought we had unearthed them.

It was a BBC TV film about New Age witchcraft that required the actors to dance around a fire naked. Suddenly, there were lots of people needing to walk their dogs that evening.”

When Ealing Town Hall was transformed into City Hall for the 1997 fantasy comedy film The Borrowers, Liddall had to source 14 identical Morris Minor cars to be lined up with immaculate precision on the forecourt.

“Everything had to look grey, uniform and dour,” he says.

Some of the most memorable shoots have been music videos. Pulp’s iconic Common People video was filmed in Acton, and global megastar Alicia Keys shot a video while riding bareback on a horse – down an Ealing street specially turfed in imitation grass for the occasion.

A social services property that had just been vacated was used in the late 1990s to film a pop video featuring chainsaw-wielding baddies.

“The shoot continued into the night and a guy living nearby was really hacked off,” recalls Liddall.

“He was livid, until his teenage daughter came to the door and asked which band it was. When I told her it was Massive Attack, she said: ‘Oh my god! Dad – you can’t stop this.’ They were her favourite band. So this man with a very stiff upper lip ended up happily hanging out with these grungy music people for the rest of the night.”

Not all has been smooth sailing.

Liddall had a nightmarish experience when he booked a big-budget TV drama in to shoot on Ealing Common.

“We charged a lot and they were filming a dramatic, emotional scene on a park bench. As the cameras began to roll, a huge trailer featuring a giant clown’s face drove slowly into view.”

It had been accidentally doublebooked: by the BBC – and the circus.

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FILM for their debut projects to major Hollywood-backed productions. Brad Pitt starred as a former UN investigator in the recent World War Z, some scenes from which were filmed in Ealing. The film grossed more than $540 million against a production budget of $190 million, becoming the highest-grossing zombie film of all time.

And when the phones aren’t ringing?

“We ring out,” says Liddall.

“We contact designers and location managers and ask what they’re working on. They need a Norwegian community centre? We haven’t got any in Norway, but we have some in Greenford that look Scandinavian in design. We put out feelers so we know what shows are being made: we make it easy for them to use us.

“The best thing is to secure locations which become a character’s home in a long-running TV show. Once established, they appear in every single episode.”

Ealing Studios is synonymous with filming in the borough and is the oldest continuously working studio facility for film production in the world, respected for its history and the stream of famous films shot there. Most recently, these include the Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything and the comedy-drama Burnt, starring Bradley Cooper as a top chef.

Barnaby Thompson, one of the partners in the studio, says: “Ealing Studios is much-loved by filmmakers all around the world, including Martin Scorsese, Stephen Frears and Simon Pegg. It has always been in Ealing and hopefully will always remain here. It is the closest studio to central London, and will be even more so with the arrival of Crossrail.”

So how has Ealing Studios managed to keep pace with an industry that is characterised by constant change?

“Technology is making huge advances all the time,” says Thompson.

“Ealing is home of the Imaginarium Studios run by Andy Serkis, who is famous for playing Gollum [in The Lord of the Rings trilogy]. Imaginarium is a state-of-the-art facility that provides motion capture, soon to be seen in the new version of The Jungle Book and Fungus The Bogeyman for TV.” Much of Liddall’s time goes on getting logistical details right. Roads

Andy Serkis runs Ealing’s state-of-the-art Imaginarium Studios.

Work out – and then enjoy rewards at the Virgin Active cafe.

“Ealing Studios is much-loved by filmmakers all around the world, including Martin Scorsese and Stephen Frears” have to be closed, access and permissions sought and there are often huge budgets riding on getting things right. As well as the likes of Pitzhanger Manor and Ealing Town Hall, residential streets are often used – and life goes on as normal around the cameras.

“Most of the residents of the borough are pretty understanding,” says Liddall.

“We’re making quite a bit of money for the council and, in most circumstances, people just really like seeing Ealing on TV. They recognise that it is a creative industry and one that’s of great economic significance to the borough.”

Ealing Council drew up a film map to explore the many locations that have been used – and this time they were hoping to attract tourists in particular.

Because film tourism is a growing global phenomenon helping create a

new breed of tourist known as the ‘setjetter’. Research shows that one in five visitors is inspired to holiday in Britain because of a film they have seen.

“It raises Ealing’s profile. Ealing now has a global reach,” confirms Liddall.

The introduction of film tax relief to the UK in 2007 had a significant positive impact. Studios such as Ealing are frequently full to capacity once more. Warner Bros has expanded its studios in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, while Pinewood has built new space in Cardiff to complement the facility it has in Shepperton.

Ealing both reflects – and spurs – this success. If Liddall and his team have anything to do with it – and you can be assured they will – filming will continue here apace, prompting for years to come the question oft-heard around Ealing: “Haven’t I seen that somewhere before?”

EALING IN LONDON

45

MET FILM SCHOOL: NURTURING FUTURE FILM TALENT

Met Film School students are trained within an “infectious atmosphere”.

The Met Film School, based at Ealing Studios in Ealing Green, runs BA programmes in practical filmmaking; specialist MA programmes in directing, screenwriting, post-production, camera, and producing; and short and part-time courses – in total educating more than 1,000 students a year across its Ealing studios and Berlin campuses.

“It is more than just a film school,” says chief executive Jonny Persey.

“Students joining the school enter a microcosm of the wider industry, an environment in which professional behaviour is demanded of them from day one; where industry-based tutors nurture the students’ creative and technical development as they engage in productions, from short films to feature films, from web series to multicamera programmes. We have taken the lead in film education by bringing education into an industry setting in multiple ways: location; industry-based tutors; integrating feature film production and web series into the curriculum; and through an innovative graduate opportunity programme.”

The school wants to inspire a new generation of screen creatives.

“By looking at TV, film, advertising, and online spaces, we are educating screen creatives who are adaptable to the wider industries.”

Fresh graduates have assisted on the likes of Star Wars VII, Mission Impossible and the James Bond smash Spectre, while many make their own films.

Met GO is the school’s graduate opportunities programme, in which students work closely with Ealing Studio resident companies to make productions for businesses. Partners include The Imaginarium, online video company Catsnake and casting agency Mad Dog Casting. The school is also linked to the University of West London.

“We are very proud to offer our teaching within the infrastructure of what is the oldest continuously working studio in the world,” says Persey.

“A steady stream of on-site productions generates an infectious atmosphere here.”

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2

1 Goodhall Street: The street on which Pulp’s Common People and Blur’s Parklife were filmed. “There was a really good ad for Mercedes Benz filmed here too, using the Janis Joplin song, back in the 90s,” says Liddall. The recent Kray twins film Legend was also shot in part on this street.

2 Woodstock Road: “It’s a great street for period dramas. They also shot a sequence here for Love Actually. It was where Martine McCutcheon’s character, who fell in love with Hugh Grant as the prime minister, was supposed to live.” The BBC’s five-part series Parade’s End, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, was filmed here too. “He had just filmed Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and was very much in the ascendant.”

3 Acton Town Hall: Remember the tear-jerking sequence of 2002 comedy/ romance About a Boy, in which Nicholas Hoult’s character takes to the school stage to sing Killing Me Softly. Shot here.

4 Mount Park Road: For the location managers scouting options for the 2013 blockbuster World War Z, a house on this street proved the perfect match to become Brad Pitt’s house in ‘Philadelphia’, USA. 5 Saint Benedict’s Abbey: Saint Benedict’s Abbey doubled as the church in San Diego, USA, in which disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong married his first wife in the 2015 biopic by Stephen Frears, The Program. “Ealing Italian restaurant Osteria del Portico was also used as the location for a meeting between actors playing Armstrong’s former team manager Johan Bruyneel and the Italian so-called ‘dodgy doctor’ Michele Ferrari,” adds Liddall, while a Tour de France press conference supposedly unfolding in Poitiers was shot at a hotel on Ealing Common.

6 Castle Bar Park: A Victorian property in this corner of the borough was used as Inspector Morse’s home in the longrunning TV series, starring John Thaw.

Many other scenes were shot on the streets around Ealing Broadway.

7 Green Man Lane estate: Scenes for the newest Silent Witness series were filmed here.

8 Warple Way: Remember the penultimate episode of 24, in which a car carrying the US president drives wildly to avoid being shot at? This was filmed near Warple Way and Stanley Gardens.

9 Southall Market: “Keira Knightley’s character goes to Southall Market to buy a sari in Bend It Like Beckham.”

10 Ealing Town Hall: One of the biggest budgeted children’s films ever when it was made in 1997, fantasy comedy The Borrowers was shot in part at Ealing Town Hall. The building became ‘City Hall’ with Ruby Wax putting in a turn as a bespectacled clerk.

11 South Acton estate: Eagled-eyed residents may have spotted awkward adolescent boys shuffling around South Acton estate during the filming of The Inbetweeners. This also provided Del Boy’s home as stand-in for the fictional Nelson Mandela House in Only Fools and Horses, stocked to the rafters with dodgy gear.

12 Southall Community Centre: Nestled behind a community centre in Southall is perhaps the least illustrious-looking location in Ealing. But a “bland 60s” building there proved the perfect spot for Little Britain location scouts searching for a spot for terrifying leader of weight loss support group Fatfighters, Marjorie Dawes. “Within about a month of taking the producer down, Matt Lucas and David Walliams were filming scenes there,” says Liddall.

13 St Stephen’s Road: Blending innovative camera techniques with the inner monologues of lead characters Mark Corrigan and Jeremy ‘Jez’ Usbourne, Peep Show has used several locations in Ealing, including St Stephen’s Road.

14 Eaton Rise: Men Behaving Badly’s Martin Clunes and Neil Morrissey know Ealing well: the house their characters shared in the long-running TV series was on Eaton Rise. “They once burned down a shed in the back garden,” notes Liddall.

15 Featherstone Road: A big sequence for British TV spy drama Spooks was filmed on Featherstone Road. “The traffic lights have gone down and cyber-terror attacks are spreading fear throughout London,” says Liddall.

16 Ealing Studios: The TV and film production company at Ealing Green is the oldest continuously working studio facility in the world. The servants’ quarters in ITV period drama Downton Abbey were shot here. Downton has won three BAFTAs, three Golden Globes and 11 Emmy awards and is the most nominated non-US show in Emmy history.

issue seven/spring ‘16

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50

REGENERATING SOUTHALL

WATERSIDE WORKS The birth of Southall Waterside enriches the area’s 21st century future and builds on the west London suburb’s vibrant 20th century heritage. A striking new development is now set to transform one of the largest brownfield sites in west London, reports Paul Coleman

S

outhall attracted families from all over London in the 1930s, swelling the west London suburb’s population to 50,000. In the 1960s, an influx of Indian and Pakistani families turned Southall into one of London’s most thriving and diverse townscapes.

Southall Waterside will gradually transform the former Southall Gas Works with 3,750 new homes over the next 25 years. Developer St James proposes to provide this new community with a two-form entry primary school, health centre, and over 74,000sq m of commercial space.

“This strategically important regeneration project is breathing new life into one of the largest brownfield sites in west London,” says Sean Ellis, chairman of St James. “Over half of the development will be thoughtfully designed open space which includes expansive public green spaces, parks and plazas – places for everyone to play, relax and spend time outdoors.

It will also open up what has been a vast inaccessible site and significantly improve the area’s connectivity.”

It is anticipated that Southall Waterside will prominently feature a hotel, a cinema, community facilities, with an added array of shops, restaurants and cafes. A revised masterplan includes “a substantial amount of” landscaped parkland, leisure and play spaces and public piazzas.

Residents will also enjoy a new network of access roads, bridges, bus routes, safe cycle paths and walkways, improving connections to the 36-hectare Minet Country Park with its hedges, waterways and grassland corridors. In addition, the cycle and pedestrian routes will link to a waterside trail along the Grand Union Canal.

Work is expected to be under way by spring 2016 and an autumn sales launch for the first phase of new homes is planned.

The development will reinvigorate this long redundant, 35.6-hectare brownfield swathe of Southall.

Bordered by the Grand Union Canal and the Great Western Main Line railway, Southall Gas Works has primarily been used for car parking and workshops.

Locally elected politicians resolved at a public meeting in early December 2015 to grant permission to St James’ revised masterplan. Revisions preserve the original plan’s ambitious quality and scope but also enhance the scheme by responding to people’s concerns.

Hence, the revised plan provides for dedicated commercial access, a reconfigured internal street layout, and a relocated new primary school.

And, of course, Southall’s existing community and Southall Waterside’s new community will be only 17 minutes from London’s West End when Crossrail arrives in 2019.

St James’ Southall Waterside will transform the Southall Gas Works.

EALING IN LONDON

“This strategically important regeneration project is breathing new life into one of the largest brownfield sites in west London”

issue seven/spring ‘16

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Assael Architecture’s feasability study shows the potential future of the council offices site.

MOVING ON UP Ealing Council has a bold plan up its sleeve to transform the space in which it works, finds Estates Gazette’s markets editor Noella Pio Kivlehan

issue seven/spring ‘16

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COUNCIL OFFICES

Sketches by Assael Architecture illustrate the proposed redevelopment of Perceval House.

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he title of Bob Dylan’s 1964 song and album The Times They Are A-Changin’ aptly sums up Ealing Council’s plans for the future of its headquarters, Perceval House. The 20,000sq m, sixstorey building in Ealing Broadway is to undergo a complete transformation via demolition, rebuild and potential development of alternative uses.

The reasons for change are numerous. Advances in technology have allowed employees to work remotely and flexibly, spending more time out of the office. Residents now make more use of the council’s facilities online, resulting in a reduced need for some council workers, which will eventually lead to a smaller workforce.

Another factor is the building’s age.

Perceval House is more than 30 years old and in need of costly maintenance and upgrading. Plus, with rising property and land prices in the capital, the building and its car parking space are valuable assets.

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell says: “Perceval House is reaching its sell-by date so we need to take action now to ensure we have a new, leaner, fitter, smarter council office for the years ahead, that saves us money on space and overheads.

“As part of this plan, instead of looking at our sites in a piecemeal fashion, we’re taking the bolder approach of dealing with all of our key locations together, and there’s no getting away from it – we will be slimming down over the coming years, which means we need to work smarter and sharper.”

The plan was agreed by the council in October. It is seeking a developer to partner with to build replacement offices, approximately 12,000sq m of which the council will own freehold.

New offices will need to be provided before the council can vacate Perceval House, so the likely solution will be to build behind the existing Perceval House on the current car park. The council would then move to the new building before the old block is demolished, although there is still an option to take a temporary building

EALING IN LONDON

elsewhere in Ealing town centre. This will then free up land for a new library, a customer services centre – of around 2,000sq m – plus other uses including new homes and commercial space.

“As technology has moved on, our customer service centre has seen a steady decline in numbers [falling from a peak of 320,000 visitors a year to 80,000 a year] and is underused as more people move online,” says Bell.

“To accelerate web usage, we’ve recently launched a more intuitive website, and we want to keep simplifying the way we interact with residents. While there are fewer people coming through the council’s front door, there are actually more who are moving into the borough, putting greater demands on housing.

So, we will be freeing up the site for new development, including a mix of affordable properties for rent for which we may be the landlord, and others on the open market. This will clearly help.”

The council is aiming to make a share of the new homes affordable for the average wage earner in the borough rather than a shared ownership – a part buy, part rent scheme – because, says Bell, “quite often the deposit element is too great for many people to realistically raise.”

Though the move is a decisive one, Ealing is not alone in making such changes. “Many council and other public sector agencies are working on transformational change programmes and some, including Brent, Croydon, Camden and Greenwich, have successfully implemented new accommodation strategies in their town centres,” says Neil Parlett, director of public sector advisory services at commercial property agency Lambert Smith Hampton, which has been advising the council.

The proposals have been brought to life in provisional designs by Assael Architecture. A developer has yet to be appointed – the council intends to be a joint partner – but there is little doubt about interest in the prime site.

“There’s already considerable developer interest because Ealing Broadway is hot property, especially

55

Dickens Yard by St George is a flagship .development in the .transformation of .Ealing Broadway.

WORKING IN A FLEXIBLE ERA Matthew Morris, operations manager of regulatory services, is part of Ealing Council’s team that carries out food hygiene visits to restaurants and food outlets. His team spends a lot of time in the community.

“The current and future office capacity means the number of council officers is higher than the number of available desks in Perceval House. As a result, staff whose job is to be out and about in the borough are working in a smarter way, to ensure desk availability while maintaining opportunities for regular face-toface contact with colleagues. This has the added benefit of providing better services to our residents and businesses,” says Morris.

He adds: “Within regulatory services (food safety, workplace safety, licensing and trading standards) we have many field officers who split their time between the office and conducting inspections at businesses and other premises.”

Team members are already urged to work flexibly: “Officers are encouraged to manage their site visits so they can start and finish in the same area without the need to come into the office. They are provided with the council’s remote working solution, Secure Global Desktop, which enables them to log on to the council network securely from their tablet or laptop devices, working from home one or more days per week. They then can re-direct their calls to their mobile device so as to provide a seamless service to customers.”

Morris says there is a desire for field officers to spend even more time out and about. This will be achieved, he says, “by implementing a mobile working solution to allow officers to capture key inspection findings such as notes and photos on a tablet device and upload them directly to the relevant database.” issue seven/spring ‘16

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COUNCIL OFFICES Ealing Cross offers 12,500sq m of highquality office space.

Work on the Ealing Filmworks development, on the site opposite Perceval House, starts this year.

“There is considerable interest because Ealing Broadway is hot property, especially with the opening of Crossrail” with the opening of Crossrail,” says Lucy Taylor, director of regeneration at the council, who is overseeing the project. Ealing Broadway is one of the new stations on the 73-mile east to west London Crossrail line – expected to open in 2019.

Parlett agrees. He says: “The successful development of Dickens Yard for 698 new high-quality apartments in the heart of Ealing town centre by developer St George gives a very good indication as to how major developers will positively respond

to this development opportunity.”

Taylor adds that the development of the Ealing Filmworks scheme will also be starting in 2016 on the site opposite Perceval House and Ealing Town Hall.

“This scheme will create a new leisure, cinema and residential heart to the town centre. Taken together with the redevelopment of Perceval House, Ealing will be well placed to benefit from a variety of schemes which are transforming the borough,” says Taylor.

Ealing Council sought a compulsory purchase order which was confirmed

in October 2015 to assemble the land and enable the construction of the £100 million Filmworks project by developer Land Securities, which will be built on a former cinema site. Bell describes it as a “neglected space” which has lain empty for five years.

The procurement process to find a developer for Perceval House will begin in April 2016 with an estimated start on-site in 2018, and completion of new council premises in 2020.

Bell says: “We are determined that this redevelopment will play a part in enhancing Ealing town centre as a great place to work and visit, potentially incorporating retail units and commercial space.”

Change is inevitable. While other local authorities tread water on meeting these challenges, Ealing is taking decisive action to drive forward value for residents.

Ealing in London partners group Joining together to support Ealing

Child Graddon Lewis James Felstead james.felstead@cgluk.com

City & Docklands Tony Helliwell tony.helliwell@cityanddocklands.com

Crosstree Matt Mason mmason@crosstree.com

Hill Jamie Hunter jamiehunter@hill.co.uk

Monarch Commercial Tony Khurll tony@monarchcommercial.co.uk

Moorfield Group Mark Holmes mark.holmes@moorfield.com

Sitematch London Sophie Gosling sophie@3foxinternational.com

Thames Valley Housing Guy Burnett guy_burnett@tvha.co.uk

Willmott Dixon Chris Tredget chris.tredget@willmottdixon.co.uk

For more information about these companies, visit ealinginlondonmagazine.com/directory

58

SITEMATCH: DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY

SANDRINGHAM MEWS (EALING TOWN CENTRE)

O

ne of Ealing Council’s upcoming development opportunities is Sandringham Mews, located just off The Broadway in Ealing town centre. The site covers 0.63 hectares and is currently under multiple private ownership – although the majority is in one ownership. It was the location of Lamertons, a furniture store/removal firm, but is currently occupied by a number of shops, cafes, restaurants and a surface-level car park.

The site is located adjacent to Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre, the location of the proposed Ealing Filmworks scheme, and opposite Dickens Yard.

With a PTAL rating of 6, the site benefits from excellent public transport

accessibility. Ealing Broadway station is a short walk away, and is connected to the District and Central underground lines, as well as direct rail lines to Paddington, Heathrow, Oxford and Reading stations. With Crossrail arriving in 2019, central London will be only a 15-minute ride away.

Mixed-use development proposals are sought for the site including retail, cafes and restaurants. Upper floor levels are suitable for residential use, as well as offices and studios. It provides the opportunity for a connecting route between the High Street and Bond Street, into the proposed Filmworks development, improving flow for pedestrians. The council expects to see this route included in any proposal.

The site is within Ealing town centre conservation area, opposite the Grade II-listed Christ the Saviour parish church.

For more information about this opportunity contact Lucy Taylor, director of regeneration and planning at Ealing Council, on taylorl@ealing.gov.uk Sitematch London is an event enabling public sector landowners to engage with private sector developers, investors and occupiers. For more information contact Sitematch researcher, Huub Nieuwstadt, on huub@3foxinternational.com or visit sitematchlondon.com

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Sandringham Mews is a short walk from Ealing Broadway station and Ealing Filmworks (above).

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The regeneration magazine for the London Borough of Ealing/issue 07/spring ‘16

- 14,000+ new homes

- 94,000sqm+ new office space

- 128,000sqm+ new retail space

- 5 new Crossrail stations

EALING IN LONDON

EALING BY 2026 Ealing – ideally placed for home, leisure and business

FREEDOM TO WORK

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