12.10.2020 PREPARATIONS UNDERWAY FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT OF THE ELEPHANT AND CASTLE TOWN CENTRE
Keltbray, the specialist civil engineering group, will commence the phased demolition of the Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre on Monday 12 October, to make way for the construction of the new town centre.
Keltbray will take a phased approach starting with the installation of permanent hoarding and scaffolding, decommissioning of the existing utility and service infrastructure and a strip-out of the building from the inside. Once this is complete, structural demolition will start with the low-rise buildings to the north of the site facing New Kent Road, before progressing south. The approach has been carefully planned to ensure noise, disruption and dust is kept to a minimum.
Keltbray has a track record of accomplishment of delivering projects in Southwark, and has created a number of employment opportunities in the local area.
The demolition process is due to continue through to summer 2021, and Keltbray will be arranging a series of monthly community engagement meetings and newsletters to keep the community informed on next steps throughout this period. The next one will be held on 3 November – you can sign up via info@elephantandcastletowncentre.co.uk.
Multiplex is assisting to provide technical services to bring forward the construction of the new town centre, which is expected to commence in 2021.
As an important symbol of the Elephant and Castle community, the Elephant statue will be restored and relocated at Castle Square during construction. It will then move to a space in the new town centre when the project completes. Other pieces of iconic signage and artefacts from the shopping centre are being retained and are also expected to be given a new home.
A spokesperson for Elephant and Castle Town Centre commented:
“The regeneration and the future of the town centre has been discussed for many years, so it is encouraging to see it moving forward. The first phase of the new town centre, which will take five years to complete, will become a central Zone One destination across 2.5 acres of high-quality, open-air public realm. It will include a new Northern Line station that is future proofed for the Bakerloo Line extension with significantly enhanced capacity, a new cutting edge building for London College of Communication, UAL and a centre for UAL’s core university services, ensuring the leading education establishment can remain in Elephant and Castle. This will represent a circa £1 billion investment and is integral to Southwark’s wider regeneration plan for the area. We are looking forward to working with Keltbray over the coming months to keep the local community informed as we move forward.”
Holly Price, skills and communities director at Keltbray commented:
“As we commence on site, we’re keen to ensure the local community and stakeholders are well informed of our plans. To communicate this, we will be hosting regular engagement sessions which will be open for local people to attend. We’ll also be distributing regular newsletters.
“As part of our commitment to the community, we will be offering employment opportunities to people living in the local area. During the demolition phase we have explored ways to provide new roles to local people and are pleased to offer vacancies including demolition labourers, welfare officers, traffic marshals and site administrators. We have also secured funding to deliver training – making it an excellent opportunity for those who are looking for a role within the local area. This is part of our commitment to the wider community”
Further information about construction is expected to be announced in the coming months.
For more information on the new Elephant and Castle town centre please visit https://elephantandcastletowncentre.co.uk/ or email info@elephantandcastletowncentre.co.uk
For live employment opportunities please visit: https://www.southwarkworks.com/jobsboard
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