Milestone Reached For Sheffield’s £300m West Bar Development

25/04/2024

A special ceremony took place today to mark a major milestone in the construction of the much-anticipated new £300 million West Bar mixed use development in Sheffield city centre.  

The first phase 100,000 sq ft Grade A office building and two residential towers comprising 368 build-to-rent (BTR) apartments have reached topping out, with just months to go for practical completion. Two public realm spaces, West Bar Square in the heart of the commercial area and Soho Yard serving the residential BTR apartments, are also due to complete soon. 

Senior officials from Sheffield City Council, Urbo (West Bar) Ltd, and Legal and General, which are all stakeholders in the significant regeneration project, attended the ceremony to celebrate the occasion.  

Bowmer + Kirkland, principal contractor for the scheme, showcased progress on site from the top of the office building, No.1 West Bar Square, which acts as an impressive gateway for the site.  It also presented the significant social, local, and economic impact achieved to date.  This represents £14.9 million of value to the local economy with 57% of jobs created locally within a 30-mile radius, 288 apprentice weeks and the overall sustainability of construction demonstrated with 99.5% of waste diverted from landfill. 

West Bar represents the long-awaited redevelopment of a prominent seven-acre brownfield site on the Inner Ring Road between Sheffield’s Kelham Island, Cathedral and Castlegate Quarters.  It is to comprise one million sq ft of mixed-use space including over 500,000 sq ft of office accommodation with amenities, public realm and hundreds of apartments and the project expects to create up to 8,000 new jobs when completed.

After many years in planning, the first phase was able to commence following a ground-breaking deal to secure £150 million funding from Legal & General.  This agreement represents the largest single city centre investment deal that Sheffield has ever seen. 

As part of the agreed deal between Legal & General and Urbo, a second 100,000 sq ft office building will be delivered to follow No.1 West Bar Square.  A new 450 space multi-storey car park is also part of the first phase which offers around 300 cycle storage spaces and electric car charging points.  Connectivity into the surrounding walking and cycling routes is incorporated to encourage more sustainable travel.  

Peter Swallow, Managing Director at Urbo, said, 

“We are delighted to reach this significant milestone at West Bar Sheffield which is a strategically important regeneration project for the city.  Indeed, it is integral to the transformational plan for Sheffield city centre, extending its prime core, and bringing forward much need new space for commercial and residential accommodation.”

Ben Rodgers, Head of Regeneration, LGIM Real Assets added, 

“We’re thrilled to reach this project milestone as we get closer to realising the vision for West Bar. This mixed-use scheme will create a vibrant new quarter that re-connects with the city centre, delivering much needed office accommodation, housing, and green landscaped public spaces.  This further helps demonstrate the power of responsibly investing pension savings in urban regeneration, transforming and reshaping cities, creating productive, sustainable assets for future generations.”

Kate Josephs, Chief Executive at Sheffield City Council, said,

“Sheffield needs high quality, energy efficient office and commercial space so it’s great to see this development close to completion. West Bar is a prime example of what can be achieved through strong partnership between the public and private sector.” 

Ralph Jones of Peveril Securities added,

“Our vision to deliver a flagship destination to support demand for high specification, large floorplate offices, new housing, and jobs, is now very real. Standing atop of No.1 West Bar is in many ways surreal but also immensely rewarding for the team that has worked tirelessly over many years and through many challenges.”

Designed by award winning architects 5plus with planning advice from Asteer Planning, No.1 West Bar Square acts as an impressive and sustainable gateway to West Bar.  Featuring a contemporary, curved, curtain glass façade, it provides eight storeys of highly efficient office floorplates up to 14,000 sq ft, a roof terrace offering panoramic views across the city and retail accommodation at ground floor. BNP Paribas Real Estate and Cushman & Wakefield have been appointed to market the space.

Soho Yard offers 368 residential apartments within two buildings situated around a landscaped space and gardens with access via Plum Lane. The properties will be delivered and operated by Legal & General as part of its highly successful ‘Build to Rent – Homes for Life’ portfolio. It sits on the site of the famous ‘Soho wheel’ that powered grinding machinery near the River Don after the Industrial Revolution.

Urbo (West Bar) Ltd, a joint venture between Urbo Regeneration and Peveril Securities (the development arm of the Bowmer and Kirkland Group).